


Blood of the Dragon

by Tidus_Targaryen



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: #Noneedtoberapetobestrong, Angst, Because women also love fantasy, Butterfly Effect, Daenerys & Viserys childhood parts, Daenerys and Missandei close relationship, Daenerys x Dignity is the first ship here, Dany & Rhaella, Different cultures and places, Dreams, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, F/M, Family, Fantasy, Feminism in a patriarchal society, Flashbacks, Fluff, House Greyjoy, House Lannister, House Martell, House Targaryen, House Velaryon, Incest, Love, Missandei is essential and precious, Missandei is not just Dany's servant..., No malediction, No marriage to Drogo, Not for Starks fans, Oberyn deserved better, Pirates, Politics, Prophecies, Sex, Slavery, Targaryen Restoration, The Journey of Daenerys Targaryen in Essos, The Northerners are still xenophobic, They deserves better, They will not be very present here, This is my happy ending for Daenerys, Treasons, Warrior Queen, What if different decisions completely changed the course of history..., Women In Power, and will have it, dany-centric
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-17
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:28:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 25,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22291069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tidus_Targaryen/pseuds/Tidus_Targaryen
Summary: What if different decisions completely changed the course of history...The Song of Ice and Fire...The last two Targaryens are in exile in Essos, their security is constantly threatened, Robert Baratheon wants them dead and the Dothraki want Daenerys.They can count on the help of a great friend to prepare the forces necessary to reconquer Westeros.But the journey will be long and they will have to travel all over Essos to find the help they need. The courage and passion of the young Daenerys will allow her to rediscover what her House lost a long time ago. A great destiny awaits her and Westeros doesn't know how much it needs her.The notes have changed, but the song is still playing.
Relationships: Daenerys Targaryen & "Drogon" & Viserion & Rhaegal, Daenerys Targaryen & Jorah Mormont, Daenerys Targaryen & Missandei, Daenerys Targaryen & Oberyn Martell, Daenerys Targaryen & Viserys Targaryen, Daenerys Targaryen/Daario Naharis, Daenerys Targaryen/Jon Snow (one-sided), Daenerys Targaryen/Original Male Character(s), Daenerys Targaryen/Viserys Targaryen (Betrothed), Daenerys Targaryen/Yara Greyjoy, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Missandei/Grey Worm
Comments: 81
Kudos: 75





	1. Stormborn/Exile

**Author's Note:**

> Hello to all the brave who want to embark on this long story! This is the first fanfiction that I write so I don't guarantee the quality of writing but I hope you will like it.
> 
> The end of GoT, and particularly Daenerys' ending, pushed me strongly to write this, but also because I have not yet found on this site, or elsewhere, a story centered on Daenerys. Of course there are stories that focus on her, but especially on her relationship with Jon and often the story focuses more on him. But Dany has her own independent story, she is her own character, and I regret that there are no stories that focus on her only (I have never read stories where she is tagged with Jorah or Drogo maybe it is). And since, after season 8, I absolutely no longer want to consider a romance with her murderer, I no longer read fanfics.... So if you know non-Jonerys/non-Drogo stories, and especially which focuses on Dany, I am interested :D
> 
> I essentially want to focus on Daenerys, her history is very rich, Essos is a great continent is a gold mine for a writer, the universe of George R.R. Martin is huge but often only exploited on Westeros. I remain persuaded that Dany deserves her own books and I hope that my story will inspire other people to write a little more about Daenerys, of her story in Essos, not just in Westeros. I don't intend to rewrite George's story, I don't see the point of it, it's his story, he does it better than anyone, if some people had done different actions, the story could change completely, but I will try to stay consistent, because realism is very important so that we can believe it (Do you know that D&D ??)
> 
> English is not my mother tongue, there may be mistakes and I am sorry. Fortunately I have [iwillstandbydaenerysforever](https://iwillstandbydaenerysforever.tumblr.com/) who helps me, advises me and above all, corrects all my mistakes! A big thank you to you my friend, this story probably wouldn't be posted without you :)
> 
> I add the moderation of comments due to the toxicity of certain people on the Dany/Jon tag, I accept your negative comments, but I have absolutely no obligation to publish them. Constructive comments are welcome, respect is essential and the only thank you I will have for providing this story for free, I want to share a passion in joy and good humor and not in hatred and insults. And yes, the Dany/Jon tag is present but by prevention for anti-Jonerys people, the tag is there for a reason and completely justified and add for the sake of consistency when the two characters will meet, but I want to clarify that there will be no Dany/Jon. Same thing for Viserys/Daenerys. So if you're only interested in these couples, it won't happen, and if you don't like these couples, don't worry, you can keep reading, but the tags are there for a reason. You have been warned.
> 
> I would like to be able to add colors to some of my texts but it doesn't take all the HTML codes :'(  
> If you have questions about the story (No spoilers), if you didn't understand something, or if you have ideas to submit to me (I don't guarantee that I will add them) or if you find errors , don't hesitate, here is my tumblr if you want to talk to me directly or ask me questions: [tidustargaryen](https://tidustargaryen.tumblr.com//)  
> Be aware, however, that I never respond to insults and anything I find disrespectful.  
> These notes have been quite long, I hope you like the story :) (I had planned another header but I didn't have time to finish it, for the moment I make a moodboard but I will change it as soon as possible.
> 
> I wanted to write Dany's song myself but I like this one :) The song is called "The Wild Rover" interpreted by The Dubliners (Viva Ireland and its songs!) But I like the version of a french group : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8amrPNw6Nw if you want to listen to it, the intro is long though.
> 
> **Disclaimers: I don't own anything, A Song of Ice and Fire is the property of George R.R. Martin, as well as all the characters, places, etc... Game of Thrones is the property of HBO.**

# 

#  _Stormborn_

The masterly wind that blew on the naval fleet, as well as on the fishing and trading boats capsized the latter and made every sailor, merchant or simple peasant busy on the ships or on the quays deaf. An icy rain fell on the island and its surroundings, waves sometimes higher than the ships crashed on the rocks and swallowed everything that had the misfortune of being at sea. A few boats had not managed to return in time and were now drifting not far from the island, for the luckiest ones, for the others they had already reached the depths of the sea. The men on these boats watched with sadness, desolation, but also fear as one ship after another disappeared, waiting for their turn, they watched helplessly as a whole naval fleet disappeared. However, they heard more than they could see, except when lightning struck a ship and set it ablaze like a torch, they had no visibility. Instead, they heard the thunder, the deafening sound of the wind, but also the rain and sometimes the terrifying cries of men and women burning alive or simply screaming in fear as they waited for their gods to come and claim them.

Between the sailors who were trying to save their ships, putting out fires or trying to empty the water flooding the deck, and those who had given up hope of survival, the soldiers did their best to save as many people as possible by allowing them to take shelter behind the fortress walls. But the raging elements had left little chance for the living, and of the hundreds of people in the harbor and on the ships, only twelve had survived, the sailors and soldiers on the boats had either perished with them or tried to swim to shore, but none had managed to survive in the face of the overwhelming force of the sea.

The few refugees behind the walls of the fortress were mostly in shock, some were in tears, or praying for all the people they had just lost while wondering why the gods had been so cruel. Soldiers and servants would come and lay blankets to dry and warm themselves, but also hot food to cheer them up. The room was filled with screaming and crying, but even so, you could still hear the storm raging outside, the ground was shaking, same for the walls, and some soldiers even claimed that wind, rain and lightning had caused a breach in one of the exterior walls.

A man hurried through the corridors of the castle, jumping with fear every time lightning struck somewhere. And although it was daylight outside, the darkness of the place, added to the one the storm had brought made the maze of corridors and stairs more difficult to navigate, only the torches and lightning brought some light into such gloomy places and the roar of the storm did not improve the young man’s mind, but what was most disturbing was the dragon sculptures that adorned the place and lazed around so real and alive. Although he was used to the castle and its sinister decoration, what he had just seen added to the weather conditions had made him very nervous and what he was about to announce was not going to be very easy for the masters of the place to hear.

He finally reached the bridge leading directly to the central tower called “The Stone Drum” then climbed the few steps that separated him from his destination. The place was even more frightening than the rest of the castle because of the strong resonance and the height of the place allowing the power of the wind to increase tenfold. But what worried the servant even more were the cries coming from the Queen’s chambers. The sweet and sad Queen Rhaella was about to give birth to her child, but it seemed that the birth was rather difficult and Her Majesty seemed to want to compete with the storm in its greatest intensity. Dragonstone wasn’t Storm’s End, but the rock from which the fortress was carved was exceptionally strong, there was no doubt in Trevas’s mind that the place would still be standing once the storm calmed down. But would it be the same for its inhabitants?

Ser Willem Darry guarded the door to the Queen’s chambers, he did not seem at all affected by the events outside, which was not the case for the few guards also present in the room, anxiety could be read on their faces and the Queen’s cries and screams did not help. “Do you have any news for us? What’s the situation outside?” Ser Willem stepped forward and showed the first signs of concern.

The servant nodded to greet the knight and replied, “I have bad news. The storm has sunk almost the entire naval fleet, as well as the merchant and fishing boats that were at the docks. At the time of my departure, three ships were still afloat, but badly damaged. I still have no report for the city, but the majority of the people on the docks and on the ships did not survive.” Ser Willem approached a window and looked out pensively. He couldn’t see the harbor from this vantage point, but he could see the power and anger of the gods coming down on Dragonstone.

At that moment, the Queen uttered a sharper, more heart-rending cry than before and a childish voice resounded. “Ser Willem… Mother …?” Young Prince Viserys had just entered the room with a servant and the knight knelt and tried to comfort him about his mother’s plight, which didn’t seem very encouraging. “My prince, the Queen is strong, she’s giving birth to a new dragon’s blood as we speak. Another Prince, or a Princess, a brother to play with and a training companion, or a little sister to protect. A newcomer to the Targaryen dynasty, it’s a great day, and the gods want this to be known, they’re making enough noise to alert the entire kingdom and let it be heard that the dragon blood is stronger than ever so that the Usurper understands he has unleashed his wrath.” The Queen’s cries had now ceased and a maid came out of the room to say a few words to Ser Willem, whose gaze fell at once. He invited young Viserys to follow him, and they both entered the room. No storm could have rivaled the horror they now had before their eyes, blood was abundant on the bed, the Queen’s face covered with tears looked as if it had taken many years in a few hours, she seemed to be having great difficulty breathing while a maid dabbed her forehead with a towel. The room smelled of death, and the Queen was apparently going to join the gods soon. But in the midst of all this chaos, the cries of a child came to brighten the hearts, the Maester brought the child close to the Prince who looked at his mother with sadness, a few tears running down his chubby child cheeks.

“It’s a girl, a Targaryen Princess.” The Maester offered the Prince to carry the child, but he quickly made his way to the Queen, without concern for the decorum. He hesitantly put his hand on his mother’s one, believing that any sudden gesture might hurt her further. The tenderness in Queen Rhaella’s eyes broke the boy’s weak resistance, and he burst into tears. Her voice resounded one last time, with difficulty, but with hope and pride.

“… Daenerys… Stormborn … of House Targaryen…”

Her gaze then turned to Ser Willem, placing all her hopes on the knight to protect and take care of the last two Targaryens, he nodded while holding back his tears, silently promising what he had already sworn to do a few hours earlier when the Queen was telling him her vows if something went wrong. The woman had endured unspeakable suffering during her life, she had lost so many children, had suffered so much abuse from her husband and yet, the most unbearable and heartbreaking thing for her was not being able to be there to care for and see her children grow up. The Targaryen dynasty was collapsing and she was not going to be able to be there to protect them. Aerys had taken everything from her, if his children were threatened when they were just innocent people, he was responsible. He was the one who had unleashed the wrath of the lords, he was the one who had not taken care to secure his family, he was the one who was responsible for the fall of their House. She could only hope for two things now, that the gods would be merciful and allow her last two children to live, they had already taken of all the others, and that Aerys II Targaryen would reach the seven hells so that she would never have to see him again even in death.

The Queen drew her last breath with a smile on her face after looking at each of her children. And the little Prince’s heart was shattered.

Thus, in the early morning, after the storm had calmed down and the necessary repairs had been made so that a boat could sail safely, the last two members of the House of Targaryen set sail for Essos, in order to ensure their safety until their maturity. The Prince, still affected by the death of his mother, had refused to approach his little sister, but had made a promise in his heart that one day they would return home, and take back what belonged to them with Fire and Blood.

#  _Exile_

The few maids of Mistress Ilissa Naeraar had hurried to the door of the Princess’s apartments to hear her sweet voice, which they said was similar to the songs of the colorful birds of the Summer Islands. They were always careful to be as discreet as possible, the Princess did not like to demonstrate her talents, but they always ended up being reprimanded by their Mistress or the Prince for their laziness and the noise of the admonitions always alerted the young girl. They had, until now, managed to remain discreet, but were dying to enter the room to be blessed by the sight of the young Valyrian beauty. The Princess was the most beautiful woman they had ever seen, despite her young age, and given their past as pleasure slaves, they had seen many women more beautiful than any other, but none surpassed the Princess. With her long hair of gold and silver, her eyes typical of her Valyrian roots, the color of the most beautiful jewels called amethysts, her natural and royal grace, they were never tired of admiring her and regretted not descending from the lineage of the Old Valyria.

The apartments of the Princess were worthy of the greatest nobles of Essos, a striking contrast when she thought back to her life before, here she had her own baths, a magnificent four-poster bed centered in the middle of the room, occupying half of the space, a table for her meals and another for her writing and reading practice. Another room where she stored the various dresses offered by her hostess, and random men seeking her favors, or her hand in marriage. The third and last room was the latrine. The main room was sumptuously decorated with statues representing the dragons of the lords who had conquered the Possessions of Valyria, as well as various animals inhabiting the continent, horses, monkeys, elephants, made of gold, bronze, and even obsidian. She had even been offered several fabrics embroidered with the three-headed dragon, emble of the Targaryen House that the Princess had hung on the walls, sometimes dreaming of being in the family dungeon, imagining her family always present, and the Targaryen dynasty stronger and larger than ever.

The young woman was standing by a window, her eyes lost in the waters of the Rhoyne, then on the many merchant ships, the sailors pouring into the port to unload their goods and dreamed of being among them, traveling through the seas and oceans, discovering the world and its various beauties and cultures. Sailing was exciting, but what she wanted above all was to cross the Narrow Sea and land in Westeros, to return home, to discover the legacy left by her family, which was stolen from her by the Usurper and his dogs and traitors who massacred her family. Life was pleasant here, it had been six moons since Mistress Ilissa had welcomed them in her big house, it was a very big place composed of several independent residences, including the large manse of Ilissa, their own private place, of her and her brother’s, as well as a big inn also containing a brothel. Life was pleasant, but the threat of a Dothraki attack was constant, and Mistress Ilissa had repeatedly paid the different Khals so that they would not attack her domain, with gold, slaves, precious objects or fabrics, anything the horse lords desired as long as they did not ransack the place.

Of all that she remembered, it was only in Braavos that she really experienced peace, happiness and carefree. Of course, she was still only a child, very young and did not have the same worries as her brother in mind. She could play with the son of one of the servants, study with her brother and listen to Ser Willem singing songs to her, including the one she was singing right now, which she particularly liked, as it described their lives in part and a possible return home. _**“I’ve been a wild rover for many’s the year… And I’ve spent all my money on wine and beer… And now I’m returning with gold in great store, I never will play the wild rover no more…”**_ She could still hear the voice of her gentle knight, the affection he had for her, the tenderness he showed her, much more than her own brother. Her few sweet years forever etched in her memory, the red door and the smell of lemon that she loved and that dark-skinned little boy who always helped her up when she fell and kissed the place where she had hurt herself.

_**“And it’s no, nay, never  
No, nay, never no more  
Will I play the wild rover  
No, never no more **_

****

****

**_I went into an alehouse I used to…”_** “Daenerys!”

Her brother entered her apartments suddenly, revealing the three maids who were still glued to her door, hurrying back to their occupations before being reprimanded. Viserys approached his sister and put his hand on her forearm, his gaze falling to the ground as if he was looking for the perfect way to tell her something. Her brother was a very handsome man, he had been blessed by the beauty of the Valyrian people just as she had, according to Ser Willem, he looked a lot like their late brother, Rhaegar, the only consolation she had in knowing the appearance of the sibling she had never known. He took her hands in his and placed a tender kiss on one of them.

“Sweet sister… Dany, I’m afraid I have to tell you that we may have to flee this town. There’s a Khalasar headed straight for us.” _Run away, again…_ When was the last time they had the peace of mind to stay in one place and keep what few friends they had? Although his brother was much more resistant to the idea, preferring to believe that his status, even in exile, forced him to demand friends of a higher rank. She did not have the same pride and could befriend and show great kindness to the lowest of men or women.

“Pack your things, I’ll arrange everything with our hostess.” Daenerys nodded and then stopped his brother before he left the room after kissing her forehead. “Brother, where will we go this time?”

“I don’t know yet, but I’ll find a place, haven’t I done it all these years? Why do I feel like this is a reproach, dear sister? Is it my fault that we are in exile? What they have done to us is unjust, and I will see that injustice punished. We are of royal blood, we are the blood of the Old Valyria, the blood of the dragon and they exterminated ours, they forced us to beg, to wander in rags, no forgiveness will be granted, we will take revenge dear sister.”

Daenerys took a few steps back, away from her brother who had come towards her in anger. She knew she was safe, she and her dear friend had made sure of that long ago, but her brother tended to be a little too self-centered, and he had to learn wisdom if he wanted to become a great king.

“Injustice… It’s true, it’s unfair, and the murderers of our niece and nephew, but also of Elia, they will pay for it, and for everything that happened afterwards, but look around us, brother… Just yesterday I saw a child … younger than I was when we were kicked out of our house in Braavos, feeding on insects on the ground, drinking from a puddle of mud half dried out by the sun and the heat, I’m not even sure it was water. We are always privileged, but these people outside, they are starving, they are working themselves to death so that they can buy a little food and the little clothes they have on them. We have beautiful fabrics, we eat our fill, we know what it is like to live on the streets, but we don’t live like that anymore. “The Princess stopped for a moment to get closer to her brother and put a hand on his cheek before she added tenderly:

“I could be one of those women, in a brothel to survive and you too … you could have been sold into slavery in a fighting arena, you could be dead by now … and so could I. We’re always luckier than other people don’t forget that, brother.”

After dropping a tender kiss on his cheek, Daenerys walked away to the room where she prepared to gather her clothes for their possible future departure. Servants, sent by her brother, were already there and had preceded her. Daenerys smiled at the girls and told them that she could take care of her possessions, freeing them from an extra burden. She sat down on a trunk and lost herself in her thoughts for a few moments, playing with the ring that her knight had given her long ago and which had belonged to her mother, the only possession she had of her, this ring and the crown that her brother had. Ser Willem often spoke to her about her mother, he also told her that she looked a lot like her, that she was as sweet and kind, smiling and welcoming, that she often sang during the time she carried Daenerys in her womb and that she liked to be alone with her future Princess and to caress her hump while telling her stories about dragons and their family. Of course, she was too young for her knight to tell her about the darker parts of her mother’s life, and the suffering and violence she had endured during her marriage, but she had finally found out from someone else, and that day was the first day she had promised herself that she would never let a man do that to her. Knowing her future husband, she knew that promise would be kept.

# 

The town square was teeming with people as usual, the market stalls were very crowded, you could find objects, food and fabrics from all over Essos, the Summer Islands, Westeros and a whole host of other less well-known places. In the middle of the square stood, proudly, the white marble statue of the Triarch Horonno, which could have been magnificent if only it had not been decapitated a long time ago by a rival faction. Most people spoke a derivative of the High Valyrian, but not only that, a whole host of foreign peoples and customs were accepted and respected in Selhorys, formerly one of the Possessions of Valyria, and which had managed to remain standing while other nearby towns were now in ruins during the conflict between the Rhoynars and the Dragon Lords. Essos was like a canvas painted in every possible color, depicting all peoples, all religions and all pleasures of the flesh, and this pleased the young Princess who was thirsty for knowledge and had spent a lot of time immersed in books, especially those from Westeros, where she could learn more about her home, things she had not learned from her brother or other people. Of course there were the dark sides of such diversification, slavery to begin with, in front of **“The Painted Turtle”** inn where most of the women, but also men, were pleasure slaves and tried by all means to lure passers-by inside in order to extract a few coins from them in exchange of sexual favors. Daenerys was no stranger to the practice, from a very young age she had seen everything there was to see about carnal relations between two or more people, most of the time in the middle of the street where people had no discomfort or desire for intimacy. But slaves occupied many other professions, fishermen, litter bearers, servants in inns or manses with the nobles, workers in the fields, hunters, all the difficult jobs were, of course, given to slaves.

The darkest thing, however, were the sacrifices she had been unlucky enough to witness, always in the name of some god or other, whether they were animals, simple precious objects or one or more people, she had never been spared from the atrocities of which her species was capable and her powerlessness to stop such things weighed only more heavily on her conscience. So many things had remained a mystery to her, but not an impossibility, after all, her ancestors had tamed and mounted dragons, they had made a steel so powerful that it could split normal armor in half, but this knowledge was now lost, even though some claim that in Qohor the blacksmiths are among the best and secretly keep the recipe for this unique steel.

She was now in front of the forges, accompanied by her brother, both hooded in a discreet outfit to avoid attracting attention. Even though their hair was not unique here, many people were lucky enough to possess the gold and silver hair of the Valyrians thanks to the crossbreeding practiced during their empire, the color of their eyes was much rarer, and they also had to wear very modest clothes to avoid curious looks, the poor or slaves attracted little attention and were more often considered as “part of the decor.” As they had no tattoos on their faces, indicating what kind of slave they were, they could only pretend to be poor, foreign merchants or artists, as Daenerys could easily pretend to be a singer, Viserys could only boast of being a good story counter.

Her brother had wanted to go to the markets to buy resources in case they were forced to flee the city quickly, but it was to the inn that he now went, claiming to want to quench his thirst, but Daenerys knew better, his brother was a man, a man with needs and a young woman in that inn had caught his attention, he certainly wanted to say goodbye to her.

The sought-after hostel was a little set back from the center of the city, you had to take several narrow streets to get there, it was the cheapest and most discreet place and the markets had attracted the majority of the population, the place was almost deserted except for a few children playing chase after chase, at times trying to steal the purses of poor people too naive to still believe in the innocence of the youngest. His brother had stepped up the pace, but Daenerys felt they were being watched, on every street corner they could come across thieves or worse, murderers or slavers. Her hand grabbed his brother’s to warn him, but he collapsed to the ground as Daenerys tried to free herself from her attacker’s grasp. It was then the look in Viserys’s eyes that told her that they were in no danger, at the same time a soft, familiar and comforting voice echoed in her ear:

“I could have been anyone and you’d both be dead by now … you’re reckless.”

Once released, the Princess turned around and was warmly greeted by the sight of her closest friend.

“Oberyn!” She threw herself into his arms and held him tightly to make up for the years that had separated them.

# 

####  _Somewhere, at a certain time_

The city of Myr was one of the richest trading cities founded by the Valyrians and one of the nine Free Cities of Essos. This town had built its wealth on trade and its excellent merchants, thousands of them came every day to do business in this city, textiles and glass were unique and very expensive resources in this town, but also very desired. The population was also large and it became difficult to move through the streets without being jostled or blocked by a group of people attracted by a stall. This served the young Targaryens well as they could move more easily among the people thanks to their small frame and relieve some of the passers of their burdens. It was always Viserys who took care of the thefts, but the young girl was so adorable that sometimes people would give her a few coins when they saw her frail nature.

It had been three years since they had been forced to flee from Braavos and were surviving as best as they could, hunger and cold being their greatest difficulties with the fear that one day they would be recognized and put to death on the orders of the Usurper. The Prince had lost any royal attitude he might have had one day and was easily confused with the other inhabitants of the streets who were also begging for survival, his sister had never known royalty, she only had the memories that her brother had told her. It was hard for her to understand him, what he had known and lost, when all she had known was fear, poverty, cold, and hunger… That was the worst of it all, being hungry, smelling the food all over the streets, the smoke from the meat, the smell of bread … seeing people constantly eating and having only leftovers lying on the ground, or any kind of crawling animals they could catch. Once her brother had tried to fish, but without equipment all he managed to do was that the fish ran away and several fishermen threatened to cook him with their stews if they came back without food because of him. Dany burst out laughing when she saw her brother’s face, of course, at her young age, she didn’t understand the seriousness of the situation. In anger, Viserys had pulled her by the arm and carried her back to the place where they slept on the ground but out of sight. He had then spent the day looking out at the sea, repeating that he would return home one day and take revenge for the affronts he had suffered.

The last Targaryens were both sitting on a rock not far from the water, they had been lucky that day, the purse that Viserys had stolen contained enough coins for them to make a decent meal and they had been able to buy for each of them a piece of bread, lamprey pie and some spiced wine which Daenerys had spit out as soon as she found the taste foul. Her grimace, however, had worked a miracle, her brother had smiled at her. He hadn’t laughed, just smiled, something he hadn’t done since Braavos, and even there he smiled very rarely. “Dany look over there, in that direction, it’s Dorne and its burning sands. And there, it’s the Stormlands, they belong to the Usurper and his House, their dungeon is called “Storm’s End“ and it is known to withstand any storm. But believe me dear sister, one day it won’t be the storm that comes down on them, but the dragons, and their dungeon won’t stand up to it, I told you what happened to Harrenhal, didn’t I?” The young Princess nodded and said “But the dragons are gone…”

“They have existed, they will exist again, we are dragons, the last, we are not simple mortals, our heritage is great, and our duty even greater, our House will rise from its ashes and our dynasty will be even greater than in the time of Aegon the Conqueror or Valyria. Of this I am sure, and on that day our enemies will regret their betrayal.”

Daenerys understood what _“enemies”_ were, she knew what death was, she had discovered it in spite of herself when Ser Willem had left this world, when her brother told her that their father, the King, had been betrayed and killed like a dog, and that because of their enemies they had to leave quickly to Dragonstone and that their mother had not been given the care necessary for her birth. Even the soldiers protecting the dungeon had wanted to sell them to the Usurper to save their lives and it was only thanks to Ser Willem and a few faithful servants that they were able to escape. But many things were still very complicated for her, so she listened to her brother without saying anything, dreaming of being able to eat her fill, of having a bit of warmth at night and above all, secretly wishing that her mother was there to take her in her arms. She would never have told Viserys, he had already told her several times that it was her fault that their mother had died, but how could she be responsible? She was just a baby… She didn’t understand, but kept quiet so that her brother would stop being angry with her.

“Look over there, that’s our ancestral dungeon, Dragonstone, and over there,” he waved to her, moving his finger a few inches. “That’s King’s Landing, home, our stolen home, one day we will go home sister.”

Dany wanted her home, she wanted her mother, her family, food and a warm bed, Dany wanted many things that a child should always have, but at this moment she would have liked more than anything that her brother took her in his arms, she then hugged very tightly the piece of stuffed cloth with the effigy of a dog she had found in the street, it was all dirty and smelled of death, but it was also her only source of comfort in these difficult times.

# 

Viserys had wanted to eat at an inn because of the meager coins he had stolen today, the place didn’t please his little sister too much, the men were rude and smelled like horse shit, the women always came to their table and sat on her brother’s lap while whispering things in his ear and looking at Dany with a vicious look. Daenerys was a bit jealous, she had been enjoying going on her brother’s lap while he told her stories about their house, but lately he was getting more and more angry with her and didn’t want to carry her anymore, he said that she wasn’t a child anymore and that the dragon wasn’t weak, but these women were much older and he seemed very happy that they were on him. Viserys got up and asked her to wait for him for a few moments without moving, he spoke for a few moments with another woman who looked at the girl. She kept looking while Viserys disappeared into another room.

Dany was a little scared to be alone, even though she suspected that her brother had asked this lady to keep an eye on her, anyone could force her outside and take her away from Viserys forever. Just when she wanted to get up to join her brother, or even to go to the woman who was always watching her, a man sat down in front of her. He had tanned skin, a mustache and smiled kindly at the girl. Dany looked down and wanted to run away when he spoke.

“You’re a pretty little girl, you almost look like a princess. There are princesses in my house too, wouldn’t you like to meet them? They could lend you their dresses and toys?” Daenerys smiled shyly and saw her frightened brother trying to hide something in a bag before approaching.

“Leave her alone.” Viserys approached and took his sister’s hand in his to leave, but the man stood up, his gaze threatening towards the Prince.

“Your brother is very rude, you know.” He stood behind Daenerys and put his hands on her shoulders. “How do you know he’s my brother?” The man then bent down and whispered in his ear, “I know many things, little dragon…” One look from him assured Viserys that he’d better follow him. The man took the Princess’s hand and gently led her upstairs into what seemed to be the room he had rented for his stay. The place was quite small, a simple space to sleep, or do other things, it was a brothel after all, the noises coming through the walls bear witness to this. There was a jug of wine on a small table in the corner of the room, and the man served a glass to the Prince, who hesitated before drinking, then seemed delighted, and the man spoke again.

“Dornish wine, the best…” Viserys took a sip and then replied with a smile, “Pale imitation of the Arbor Gold but it is good indeed… You are certainly Westerosi, Dornish? Anyway, I don't know who you're confusing us with, but you’re mistaken, we’re from Lys, she’s my little sister and I ran away with her so she wouldn’t become a pleasure slave.” When Viserys turned around, he saw his sister rummaging through his bag and pulling out their mother’s crown, which he had refused to sell until now, the only memory he had of her apart from the ring his sister had, but the difficulty of feeding herself was increasing day by day, people were becoming more and more suspicious of children for stealing their purses and yesterday he had seen a man catch one of them trying to steal him, he had not seen what happened to the child afterwards, but he was sure that the punishment had to be consequent. He had climbed up a large rock surrounded by water to hide the most precious object they had, which he was desperate to sell.

“Viserys, what is it doing in your bag?” Her brother panicked for a moment in front of the stranger, but he didn’t seem surprised at all. He walked up to Daenerys and stroked the object with one finger.

“She was beautiful your mother, I still remember her royal posture, a real queen, not like your father.” The Prince pulled the crown away from the stranger and drew Daenerys behind him as the child began to ask about their mother. “Who are you?! If you want to do the Usurper’s dirty work, you’ll regret it, you talk to the true King!” Viserys always carried a dagger with him, he was never very good with a sword, and the weapon would have been too flashy, expensive and heavy to carry, a dagger was much more inconspicuous and the only weapon they had to defend themselves. He tried to stab the man with it, but he dodged and knocked the young Prince to the ground. Daenerys began to cry when she saw her brother on the floor, but the man calmed her down immediately.

“I won’t hurt you, little princess, or your brother, but I can’t let him kill me, can I? If you two will calm down, I can tell you why I’m here.” The man took some more wine and served it to the Prince and then sat down on his bed wanting the Princess to come next to him, but Viserys kept his sister close, the stranger’s face lost all smile.

“We do no harm to the children in Dorne … we are neither Lannister nor Baratheon… But we, too, are sure to pay our debts, and our fury is worth far more than that of the Stag… We are patient, we love justice and vengeance, but we can wait to strike better and harder. The time for two children to grow up. ” The man stood up and talk again, emphasizing each of the names he spoke in his beautiful Dornish voice. “Justice for Rhaenys Targaryen, justice for Aegon Targaryen and justice for Elia Martell…” Seriousness had replaced his light and friendly attitude, his words more furious than the snakes that inhabited his lands.

“My name is Oberyn Martell, and I want only two things from you. Fire and Blood.”


	2. Daenerys, The Dreamer

# 

#  _Daenerys, The Dreamer_

####  _Somewhere, at a certain time_

"You want our help... ?” Viserys laughed then, but Oberyn didn't seem to be offended by that, he just looked at him, looking for something he was the only one to know. "I am honoured by the trust you have placed in me, but what can I possibly do ? Have you observed our way of life? We are beggars, we have no armies either. Instead, you should turn to the Houses of Westeros who want their true king on the throne. ”

"Unfortunately, there aren't many lords left who support the Mad King's children..."

"How dare you?! My father was your king, you owe him respect. You should blame the traitors who took his life and plunged the kingdom into war. ”

A maid had just brought another jar of Dornish wine before the sensitive conversation between the representatives of the two Westerosi Houses began. After having served a new cup of wine for himself, Oberyn sat down beside the princess on the bed and took her hand in his, he raised it a little higher to inspect the former Queen's ring before answering the prince.

"Oh, but I do, every day, every day I curse the Lannisters for what they did to King's Landing, what they did to my niece and nephew, my dear sister, my sweet and innocent sister, and her innocent children. I curse Robert Baratheon for not asking a punishment for these barbaric murders, he should have taken Tywin Lannister's head on the spot, he should have delivered The Mountain and Amory Lorch to us so that we could do justice ourselves, if only he had been worthy to be king. I curse his reign and that drunken pig with all my soul. "Oberyn let go of Daenerys' hand and stood up, he came very close to Viserys and stared intensely. "But never... never will I be able to respect your father. He was cruel and he was mad. Completely insane..."

Courage was not a quality the prince had, but the anger he had in him was large, even powerful. That anger sometimes drove him to do stupid, dangerous things. His father was a great king, and he will be even greater, but he had to be respected first, he could not let a so-called "partisan" speak such treacherous words. He had quickly got up and grabbed the man by his tunic and dragged him to the other side of the small room.

"I forbid you to talk about my father like that! You are a liar! A liar! You spread the lies of the Usurper, and I'll take your head for it!”

The Dornish Prince had been too surprised to react and had hit the table on which the wine jug had overturned. The man was a great fighter with very good reflexes, the young age, thinness and cowardly temperament of the Targaryen had deceived him. Perhaps he had judged him a little hastily? He could still make him a great king. He would have liked to have found the Targaryens long before, it was easier and more efficient to train a young boy rather than a young man, but his sister had the ideal age, she seemed terrified though, and far too thin to be able to hold a sword or a spear. There was much work to be done to make up for the backwardness of the last two Targaryens in royal education. Oberyn liked challenges, and his thirst for revenge was his main driving force, he had promised his brother a fast return to Dorne, he had to quickly settle the situation with Viserys so that they could all go to Sunspear.

The Dornishman grabbed the prince's hands and pushed him away before readjusting his tunic and seeing the jug on the ground with disappointment.

"You've got balls, I'll give you that. I can also leave you both here. What a pity, the last two Targaryens found dead in a stinking alleyway in Myr, or ended up as slaves in Lys perhaps? Your sister will make a beautiful woman later, she'll surely make a master's fortune in a brothel." The man added coldly.

Viserys knew they were in a very dangerous situation. They were going to have to leave this town and find another, hoping that their name and the prestige of their House would open the doors of a rich merchant or owner of a fighting pit, perhaps a man from the nobility who could provide them with an army, or the money to recruit one. But the worst could also happen, and his House would die with him and his sister, the honour of restoring his dynasty lost forever. The last crown prince of House Targaryen...

He had to tolerate this Dornishman for the good of his House. His reign would be greater than any other Targaryen, even greater than the reign of Aegon the Conqueror, who had the help of three dragons. He would accept his help, as well as Dorne's one, and make him pay for his treacherous words once king.

"Was our father a bad man?" The young princess had risen up and grabbed the bottom of Oberyn's tunic to get his attention. He could tolerate the Dornish's words, but he certainly wouldn't let his sister think such infamy. He grabbed her arm and brought her violently back to the bed with an angry look in his eyes.

"Don't ever say that again! I forbid you to disrespect our father, our king. He has offered you life and a great name, a great House, you will be worthy of him, and you will be worthy of me! Do you hear me, sister?”

Dany had lowered her head during the reprimand and trembled with all her limbs, which made Oberyn angry thinking of the horror, the terror his sister and her children had felt at the wrath of a man. He grabbed his spear from the table and sent it with rage into the wall above the bed, the spear had grazed the prince's hair, which had quickly gone from a violent to a frightened child.

"I will be ready to call you my king, to help you regain your throne, but never, I never want to see this again... My sister was everything to me, her and my daughters, I will do anything for her to be here today. You are lucky to have a sister, your flesh and blood that allows you not to be called the last of your House, it is up to you to be worthy of her and to do what every older brother has to do, protect his little sister.

Viserys then quickly left the room, vexed and surely frightened by the imposing character of the Dornish. As for his sister, she looked at the man with big round eyes and wondered how he could stand up to her brother, their king, or future king, the dragon, as he called himself, and _'never wake the dragon',_ he said, who would dare stand up to a dragon? Would he take revenge on her next? This man would not always be there to calm his brother, this man did not understand the life they had in those streets, his brother did his best to keep them alive, and if sometimes he was angry, it was not his fault, but that of those who had forced them into exile. She always forgave her brother, he was all she had, the only one who took care of her, since Ser Willem died, without him she would not have been here for a long time, or, in a worse place.

"I'll take you both back to my house in Dorne, it's even hotter than here, the Water Gardens are beautiful, it's my brother's palace, our palace." _I want to go home..._ The man slowly approached and crouched down in front of her. There was something reassuring in his eyes, and even though she had only known him for a short time, she had a terrible urge to cuddle up to him, yet she restrained herself. 

# 

Later that day, Oberyn and Daenerys left his room to search for Viserys. It didn't take them long to find him, he was perched on the rock above which he had just replaced their mother's crown. When he came down, he went ashore and put his dry tunic back on him. 

"I've met you both before, you know. After the Rebellion, I wanted my revenge, I wanted to attacked King's Landing to avenge my sister and her children, but my brother was more rational, everyone knew the last two Targaryens had fled Dragonstone, and Doran, my brother, asked me to find you." Oberyn's revelations had piqued the curiosity of Viserys, who had approached and listened without a glance at the Dornish. "After spending several days in Braavos, I came across Ser Willem Darry, what a miracle, I had no trouble recognising him. It wasn't easy to gain his trust, but we were able to make a pact. When Viserys grew up, he would marry my niece, Arianne, Princess of Dorne, which would reunite House Martell and House Targaryen on the throne of the Seven Kingdoms, which we would regain thanks to Dorne's army and other partisans, and hopefully for perpetuity. ”

"You could have invented this at any time to gain power on the throne. You've already proved yourself a poor servant to my House with your words against my father."

"There's a witness... do you think i'm a fool ? The Sealord of Braavos witnessed the signing of the pact. I had to leave Essos shortly afterwards, to avoid attracting the attention of Robert's spies. When I came back a few moons later, you were gone, and I heard that Ser Willem was dead. Our whole plan was falling apart, Doran assured me you were dead, it was impossible for you to survive on your own. I didn't want to throw away our last hopes so easily. Luckily I had connections in Essos, people I had met in my youth, I asked them to keep an eye out if one day they saw two children with silver hair and purple eyes. And here I am."

"This pact was made without my consent, without the consent of your king, it has no value. I will not marry Princess Arianne. If I'm to believe what you're telling me, you've always supported House Targaryen, you need House Targaryen, you need our name to rally other armies and take King's Landing. I have much more to offer than you.

"Don't test my patience, boy. I also have reasons to not support House Targaryen and seek revenge for what your brother did to my sister."

Oberyn then told the whole story, everything Viserys didn't know, or didn't want to know. The Mad King in all his cruelty and his passion for the fire, the poor Queen Rhaella, victim of her husband, Rhaegar abandoning his wife and children to flee with the she-wolf. Viserys didn't get angry this time, but he left, claiming he wanted to go to bed. Oberyn had rented a room for the two of them so that they wouldn't spend a night in the street, he accompanied the little Princess who had fallen asleep against him and then went to bed, hoping to reason with this parody of a king, doubting that he was different from his father. The next day, Viserys told him that he still did not wish to marry Arianne, he had already committed himself to marry his sister and advanced the fact that they were the last two Targaryens, they had to rebuild their lineage in the purest possible way. Oberyn had to find something else to negotiate, Doran would never agree to risk any Dornish life without a compensation.

# 

Daenerys liked the fresh sea air, she liked to watch the waves and feel the boat rocking under her. It was a beautiful day, it was very hot, but the wind blowing through her beautiful silver curls cooled her down a lot. Looking out over the sea, she observed the different fishes through the clarity of the water, all kinds of species of unimaginable colours, of a breathtaking beauty that seemed to follow the ship on which she was standing. She wished she could jump into the water and share a walk with the dolphins that had joined the shoal. She felt such a sense of freedom that she had never experienced before, she loved the sea, she loved the wind, she loved the sound of the different birds above her, she loved to sail, she was happy. The big smile on her face had disappeared as she looked up to see a huge pyramid in the distance topped by a winged statue, surprise overwhelmed her as she wondered how she could be close to land when just a moment before there was only the sea in sight.

Her question remained unanswered at the sound of a door being slammed. Dany turned to the origin of the noise and walked towards it, the door in question was very familiar to her. It was the one she had been dreaming about, the one that had closed behind her and her brother forever, exactly the same one. _The red door._ Her hand was hesitant, but she finally put it on the handle. Inside, everything was dark, but she could hear someone calling out for her, it was a whisper that she couldn't quite understand yet, but she finally recognized her name, _"Dany... Dany..."_ said the male voice.

"Viserys?" Only her brother called her that, the outlines of another door were drawn in front of her. A room, on the bed, a man, her brother... _No..._ Taller, with brown hair. Oberyn? _No... Oberyn is slimmer, and taller._ Daenerys moved slowly, she didn't want to wake him, not until she knew who he was. She took her dagger out of its sheath and could see the naked man on the bed, but his face was just a shadow she couldn't see. She decided to come even closer, she had to know who this man was, and what he was doing on her ship... _My ship...?_ She didn't have a boat of her own... _His ship...?_ This man seemed to be sleeping deeply, peacefully, she didn't know why, but she felt the desperate urge to put her hand through his curls, to tell him not to worry, that he could still sleep peacefully, she was watching over him. Her eyes followed the hard lines of his muscles and ran through his body slowly when the distant sound of an animal had resonate.

She turned her gaze and saw a different door from the one she had entered through. She took one last look at the stranger before disappearing. She returned on the deck of the boat, but something was different. The weather had darkened, the wind seemed angry and a storm was threatening to fall on her. The waves were shaking the boat violently and it was hard for her to stand. She had been on the ground several times before she reached the railing where she could hold on as the waves became more powerful when the first thunderclap sounded.

A thud from the water made Daenerys tremble and she didn't have to wait long to find out the origin of the awful sound she had just heard. Huge tentacles sprung up from under the sea and clung to the ship. Daenerys knew the fantasy tales of the sailors she had met in her short life, and the giant Krakens were among them, but they were only legends, the ramblings of people who had fallen asleep too long on the bottle. The princess prepared to end up at the bottom of the sea, drowned, or devoured by this foul beast, but as the ship left the surface, when she opened her eyes again, she was not under the sea, but still in a sea, but this time, a sea of grass higher than she was. Large translucent stems seemed to have neither beginning nor end, Daenerys could hardly see the sky and seemed to have been swallowed by her surroundings. However, it was still dark outside, the wind had died down, but she was now on solid ground. She did not know how or why she had come here, but she was determined to finding the way out.

She seemed to have been walking for hours when she finally saw something other than grass far in front of her. She quickened her pace, but something grabbed her leg, and then the other, her arms were the next to be hindered. The grass was trying to hold her back and Dany was struggling with all her strength to free herself. After one last effort, she fell to the ground, finally free, but when she lifted her head up, strange black buildings were in front of her. The material was strange and when she approached to touch it, something else caught her attention. She was in a city, but seemed totally deserted, not a sound, the place was strange and dull, as if dead, there was a smell of burning, but nothing seemed to be on fire, no smoke anywhere, nothing but the houses and what seemed to be a market at the end of the street. The place seemed huge, Daenerys was walking aimlessly through the alleys when at last she crossed someone else's path. Wrapped in an outfit that showed no skin, the face hidden behind a strange mask, the stranger looked at the young woman for a few moments before turning around and taking the adjacent street. Dany started running to catch up with the stranger when she found herself in front of the entrance to a cave, she entered and was now in a total darkness.

The same animal scream she had heard on the boat alerted her ears again, it increasing in volume as she got closer, it was very dark, too dark for her to discern anything. She was moving slowly to avoid a possible collision when two red eyes opened up in front of her and looked at her menacingly. The sound of a frightening breath had invaded the place, the smell of smoke and ashes too, the mouth of the beast had opened and a red light was appearing, increasing in volume little by little... It was only when Dany knew what animal it was that the fire had fallen on her, surrounding her, licking her skin and warming her body and soul in an instant. She thought her skin would melt, that only her bones would remain once the fire was out, and yet she felt no pain, but pleasure and enchantment. The fire was like a husband making love to her and creating life in her, _was there a better feeling in the world?_

The fire called to her, asked her to open her eyes and see, and she saw. She saw a great army that the fire drew before her, it then turned into thousands of horses galloping towards her and disappearing to take on a human form that looked neither like a man nor a woman. The form slowly drew closer and when it was near her, Daenerys felt an icy cold invade her, despite the fire surrounding her, the heat had completely disappeared. Dany hugged herself with her arms, hoping to get warm, when the hand of this thing came close to her, she closed her eyes hoping that the fire would change shape again and she would feel the warmth again.

But when she opened her eyes, the fire had disappeared, the strange shape had gone, the cold was still there, but much more bearable. She was now in a large room, the elements surrounding her were luxurious, huge pillars decorated with dragons populated this room, Daenerys touched the familiar shapes with her fingertips before she saw a huge throne at the back of the room surmounted by the emblem of a lion, _Lannister._ She had heard of this throne, forged by Balerion the Black Dread from the swords of the vanquished enemies of Aegon the Conqueror. It was huge, a symbol of her House, of the Targaryen dynasty, _the Iron Throne, I'm home... But the throne is held by the Baratheon..._ To her, it was a horrible thing... She saw her brother sitting at the top, she could imagine the proud look he would have at that moment, but it wasn't her, it wasn't for her. The one at the top dominated everyone, he had considerable power, he could do what he wanted, impose his will, his authority, his cruelty. Like her father in his time...

It was a terrifying laugh that she heard followed by words that she distinguished perfectly _"Burn them all! Burn them all!!!"_ His words echoed through the huge room and cooled her down even more than the strange shape she had just encountered. She was afraid to turn her eyes to the throne, afraid of what she would see there, but when she looked for her father, there was nothing. It was then that the ground shook beneath her feet, explosions coming from the city, when she approached the opening to what must have been King's Landing, she saw huge green flames devouring every dwelling, people screaming and trying to flee into the streets, but nothing could save them. The flames approached the dungeon and soon it was she who was overwhelmed by the flames, but this time she burned.

The pain had been terrible, and the temperature change even worse. The shock of the cold seized her again, and she woke up surrounded by white. What she touched was very cold, and she had never felt snow, but it was snow, she knew it. She got up and walked a few steps forward before discovering a magnificent view in front of her. The little nightgown she had did not protect her from the cold, but the view in front of her certainly warmed her up. The sun was slowly setting over a huge forest of trees that she had never seen before. When she looked down, she saw the huge wall of ice under her feet, it was so high, so imposing, so terrifying. She knew where she was, her brother had described the regions of Westeros to her, and The Wall was one of the worst places in this continent. Here lived the rapists, thieves and murderers who were supposed to protect the kingdom against the Wildlings, but thousands of years ago, he had told her the crazy story of vile creatures, ice monsters that had attacked men. Monsters north of the Wall, monsters that terrified her when Viserys told her this before she went to sleep. The place seemed totally deserted and too beautiful to be inhabited by such monsters. Once again, she saw the same stranger she had followed into the cave when she was in that dark and strange city, he looked towards her and then disappeared among the hundreds of trees.

After descending the many steps, Daenerys went through a long tunnel and passed under the raised gate to get behind the Wall. The forest seemed to have receded even further and the snow under the young woman's bare feet was a real torture. She walked relentlessly and aimlessly now, a thick fog had descended on her and the trees had now disappeared. The cold intensified and the rustle in her ears disoriented her and she found herself kneeling in the snow, curled up on herself, hoping that when she opened her eyes again she would be in a different place, but this time she had not changed her place. The storm had receded a little, but that wasn't going to help Daenerys, a wolf was in front of her, he was huge, and she was sure it could swallow her whole. She took a few steps back while keeping her eyes on the wolf, but soon she realized that other wolves had surrounded her, they were slowly approaching her and had started to growl. The fire seemed a much better way to die, she hoped they would rush to devour her, but once again the storm returned and the wolves were gone. She heard strange sounds, words, it did not sound like any other language she knew, voices belonging to the shadows appearing in the middle of the fog in front of her. They seemed to communicate with each other and the closer they got, the colder she felt.

A giant paw crossed the fog to come and stand between two white shadows, the creature in front of her was terrifying, immense and overcome by another that looked much more like a man. But a man who had already known death. Pieces of skin hung from him, some parts of his body were missing, but what frightened her much more were the two bright blue orbs that looked at her. He seemed to be wearing a strange white armour too, like the skin it covered, he brandished a translucent sword which he raised in the air while speaking and other shadows appeared. Thousands all around her slowly appeared and took the shape of the one climbing on the immense spider. Some were riding simple horses, but just as dead as they were, others were on bears, giant wolves, or even enormous mammoths which she had once studied in one of Mistress Ilissa's books. The dead men was now moving quickly towards her and the stranger reappeared behind her and put his hand on her shoulder. The intense heat she felt on contact reassured her and when she turned around, she saw two red eyes looking at her through the mask, a female voice resounded.

"The fire is your gift, Stormborn, embrace it. ”

Daenerys awoke in her bed, breathing rapidly and her skin covered with a film of sweat. In front of her, a female form that she could hardly distinguish, the fog of sleep still upon her, but very soon she saw a silver hair slipped along a chest covered with a scarlet red dress, the woman stood with a certain posture, a royale posture, and had joined her two hands in front of her while observing the princess on her bed. A smile appeared on her lips as Dany could see her features more easily. _Is it me... older ?_ The woman now stepped to the side of the bed and settled down before taking her hand in hers.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you, my darling, to protect both of you. But I'm so proud to see this incredible woman you've become. ”

Daenerys looked at this woman with astonishment, she was still dreaming, it was only a dream and when she woke up she would be alone in her room. Was it a gift or a simple torture?

"Mother...? I'm asleep, you're not real." The former Queen didn't seem to be hurt by her daughter's reply, she just put a hand on the cheek of her young princess. "I won't be only if you wish it. Does that change anything?

"Yes... of course, I will wake up and you will no longer be here, I will be alone with Viserys again. And I won't even be able to tell him I saw you, he'll never believe me, he's always blamed me and he was right, it's my fault you're dead."  
"Never think that you are responsible for my death, never feel guilty about things you have no control over, never forget these words. As for me, I would sacrifice myself a thousand times if I had to so that you could live, you are my child, my flesh and blood. You are not alone my dear, you will never be alone and I am not worried about you at all. I know the best is yet to come. I regret the past, and what drove both of you into exile, maybe I could have changed things. But your future is wonderful. You just have to trust yourself. ”  
"My future? What about Viserys? He will be king and I will be his queen.  
"What is written on paper fades, what is in blood and in heart endures."

Her mother's smile had not faded, but the enigmatic answer worried Daenerys, but for the moment, her mother was with her, and she was going to take advantage of it. She couldn't resist the urge to hold her tightly, hoping to keep her and take her out of the world of dreams, but if she had learned one thing since birth, it was that life had given her no gift. Her mother got up and returned to her original place, there was so much love in her eyes that Dany's tears kept flowing ever since she had hugged her for the first time in her life. She wished this moment would never end, no matter Westeros, no matter Oberyn and his plan, Viserys and his throne, in that moment, all she wanted was to be with her mother, to get to know her, to laugh with her, to share tender moments together, to be mother and daughter, no more Targaryen, no more dynasty, no more duty.

She did not have time to see her mother after reopening her eyes that she had already disappeared and in her place was the stranger she had pursued in her dream.

"Stormborn... Daughter of Dragons... Daughter of Fire… Bringer of the Dawn..." _A woman..._ The voice that rose from behind the mask was undeniably a woman's one, dressed in a red coat and hood, hiding her hair with it, not revealing any part of her body, not a hint of skin, she was content to look at Daenerys, her eyes still red was the only part she could see. "Don't forget your gift, don't forget who you are. ”

When Daenerys woke up, for real this time, she was indeed alone. This dream had completely disturbed her and added to her confusion, she felt two other completely opposite feelings. She was so happy to have been able to see her mother, to have been able to feel her body against her, to have had the chance to hear her voice, to be able to appreciate the warm and loving words she had said to her and to feel them as she looked into her mother's eyes. Nothing could be more wonderful than that, but it was only a dream, and now she was alone. Would she ever see her again? She hadn't even thought to ask her if Rhaegar was with her, if he was proud of his brother and sister, she had had so little time, and so many questions. Outside, the sky was dark, the city peaceful, Daenerys went out on her balcony to put her thoughts in order. The nights were cold despite the hot days, but the air was pleasant. Her dream seemed so unrealistic and at the same time intended to make her understand something, but who was this woman? And what was she referring to with her strange words? She had to tell her brother about it, perhaps he also had the same dreams, he was the Targaryen heir, he must have had a visit from this woman if this dream meant something.

# 

Daenerys woke up a little later than usual, her night had been very agitated and she was still disturbed by her dream. She put on her favourite trousers, the ones her brother hated, claiming that they were not worthy of a future queen, but she didn't care, she was comfortable, and the pants was more fit for fighting, the tunic too. Now that Oberyn had returned, perhaps he wanted to practice, or rather, test her. He was very strict in his education, he never spared her, and it was a source of pride for Daenerys to have stood up to the lessons of this warrior she admired so much. The spear he had given her laid along her bed, ready to be taken, the day he gave it to her, Viserys disappeared for several hours, Oberyn had never hidden his preference for the girl, he was much harder on her when it came to education, but it was to her that he spoke for hours, it was with her that he would go on horseback for long rides along the Rhoyne. Viserys had never sought to socialize with Oberyn, he stuck to the relationship of a king with one of his subjects, but he liked pretty things, he liked to be given things worthy of his rank, but Daenerys' gifts were always more valuable than his own, and Oberyn had no qualms about showing the difference. A little personal revenge for the demands that Viserys had expressed in the Targaryen-Martell alliance.

She went to the terrace, the usual place where they broke their feast together. The Mistress always came to share this moment with them, before going to attend to her personal affairs, only today it was Oberyn who occupied her place. He enjoyed figs and various other fruits that often made up their meal. Daenerys loved them, she loved to eat plenty of them on hot days and when she had trained hard. The smile of her favorite Dornishman glowed when he saw her, she placed a sweet kiss on his cheek before settling down in front of him to start by grabbing a few grapes that she quickly tasted.

"Did my princess sleep well? You seem to be absent this morning. ”  
"Forgive me, I don't really feel like talking about my night, I'm sure yours was more than satisfactory. "She said with a hint of laughter in her voice. She knew Oberyn, she was the right age, he had told her, so he could tell her that she should enjoy the pleasures of this world. Daenerys always avoided the discussion and preferred not to think of anyone other than her brother. "Why did it take you so long to come back? ”

"I'm sorry, my dear, but I also have daughters to take care of. Your brother refused to train with me, he said he didn't have time for my nonsense and will join us later. I thought the years would give him the wisdom necessary to any good king."

"He's frustrated, it's been eight years now you've had to take us back to Dorne, every day is one day too many for the Usurper on the Targaryen throne." Daenerys cleaned the sweet nectar from her fingers and gave her friend an apologetic look. She was more patient than her brother, but she was also eager to go home.

"You know the reasons, by the way, I've got some news. The Hand of the King is dead, Good King Robert..." he said ironically, "...was on his way up north when I left Dorne, he's going to ask Ned Stark to be his new Hand. From wolves in the lion's den, the honorable Ned Stark will have his tail between his legs once he's in the capital."

Dany went mute, she didn't really know what to think of the Starks. The she-wolf had seduced her brother and kept him away from his family, although she also blamed Rhaegar for this. Ned Stark had participated in the Rebellion, and although her father deserved to be ousted, it had led to their exile, and everything that followed. Could her mother have survived if she had given birth at King's Landing, with the best of care? He had also continued to support the Usurper despite the fact that he had left the deaths of two children, and their mother, unpunished. So Jon Arryn was dead, one less. But the worst were still standing.

"Daenerys, Martell! "Her brother had just arrived with Mistress Ilissa. He seemed angry and their hostess worried. "The Dothraki are here, they've sent a representative. There's also a rich Magister of Pentos who wishes to meet the Targaryens," Ilissa said in her sweet voice."  
"Thank you, Madam. But how did they know about us? ”  
"We'll soon find out, bring the representative of the Dothraki first, we shouldn't offend the horse fuckers. "Added Viserys to one of the maids.

Daenerys knew little of these people, but was it possible they... _No... better not to know._

They went to the main room to greet the visitor, the man who entered was of advanced age, but not old, he was simply dressed, without armor, and seemed to be distressed by the heat. To her surprise, but to Viserys' delight, the man knelt down and raised his head, lingering for a few moments on the young princess before turning to her brother.

"It's an honor to meet the last Targaryens, the heir to the Iron Throne and you, Princess Daenerys. I am Jorah Mormont, I was a knight in the Seven Kingdoms, i was also forced into exile, though for different reasons. ”

"You only have a few seconds to explain yourself before I take your head for treason. You took part in the Usurper Rebellion that brought down my House. ”

"I obeyed my father's orders, but I will submit to my king's justice if it suits him so. The great Khal Drogo wishes to meet the princess, he wishes to marry her, to make her his Khaleesi. In exchange, he will help you win back the Iron Throne. Ten thousand proud warriors who will destroy your enemies on the battlefield."

Daenerys was surprised by his answer. A man wished to marry her without ever having met her. Her brother had described them as savages, but what would they do to this town, and to them, if she refused?

"Ten thousand, is that my sister's price? Is this the few men he has in his army ?"  
"A horde, Your Grace, and no, I think it would be a great insult to think that your sister has a price. We can begin negotiations if it pleases you, the horde consists of forty thousand men."  
"And what will he do if I deny him my sister? Will he leave and return to his sea of grass? How did he find out about us?"  
"When a Khal dies, his wife joins the Dosh Khaleen, the sacred temple of the Dothraki, the priestesses who make up the temple advise and read omens to the Khals. It was foretold to Khal Drogo that he would marry the silver-haired Targaryen and from their union will be born the stallion who mounts the world." Oberyn had just entered the room and the knight cast a strange glance, had he recognized him? Anyway, he wasn't in Westeros anymore, it wasn’t dangerous for them.

After Mistress Illissa intervened to invite the Khal the next day, the Targaryens were alone to discuss and figure out what they were going to do. If the Dothraki believed so strongly in their prophecy, they would not be content with a simple refusal.

"You can marry him instead of me? he said 'a silver-haired Targaryen...' without specifying which one..." Viserys turned to his sister with an angry look in his eyes, but she sketched a sly smile in response. "Very funny dear sister, will your jokes be enough for the Khal tomorrow? I have no intention of agreeing to this marriage. The dragon does not mix with the stinking horse." Dany took his hand in hers. "Let's talk it over with Oberyn, I'll go get him."

"No need, I'm here, look what I found..." Next to Oberyn stood a woman, all dressed in red, hooded and mysterious. She was very beautiful, she took off her hood and let out her long brown hair, her eyes had immediately fallen on the princess, as if she was the only one in the room. "You have found me only because I have allowed you, I wish to meet you." Oberyn stopped her from making her way to Dany.  
"Don't listen to her, she's a priestess of R'hllor. You'll probably end up in a pile of ashes if you trust her, they like to burn a lot of stuff."  
"Children of the fire don't burn... I can help you with your Dothraki problem. They fear my magic." Her eyes never turned away from the princess as she spoke, there was something strangely familiar about her. Viserys was astonishingly in agreement with Oberyn when it came to the priestess, he wanted her to leave just as badly. They still had a guest to meet, another person who knew who they were. When Oberyn was about to take her out, she added one more thing.

"Don't forget your gift." The sentence froze Dany's blood and she verbally arrested his friend. She came closer and saw a red glow in the woman's eyes. Was she the stranger who had appeared in her dream? The risk was great, but her mother had asked her to trust herself, and everything in her told her to listen to this woman.

"Your new guest is here, the Magister from Pentos." Ilissa Naeraar came from the entrance accompanied by several maids carrying trays filled with various foods and drinks. She then saw Oberyn disappear with the priestess and hoped that he would trust her and would not throw her out. The trays were placed in the next room, while a healthy man entered. He had a radiant smile, a large beard splitting in two which he had tied at the ends. Behind him, several servants entered one by one with chests of all sizes, which they placed at her brother's feet. They had also placed food in the dining room. Viserys was delighted by this, but Daenerys had a suspicious look in her eyes, why did a stranger offer them so much?

"The great Viserys Targaryen and his beautiful sister Daenerys, let me introduce myself. Illyrio Mopatis, a great merchant living in Pentos, it is a real pleasure to meet you. I've been looking for you for so long." He barely got down on one knee and found it even harder to get up again. Then he leaned over to her and took her hand and kissed it. "I would like to offer you my help in regaining your throne, but first I would like to offer you the delicious food I have brought back from the Summer Isles, among others. “

The tables were covered with food testifying to the Magister's wealth, Mistress Ilissa had allowed the servants to eat at a table with them which seemed to displease their guest who treated his own as if they were his slaves. They weren't been allowed to participate in the feast despite the hostess's invitation. There were many spicy and fruity wines and Oberyn would surely regret not being there, but it was better that he kept a low profile. The merchant specialized in spices and had brought several dishes cooked with them. In front of her were several fish, eels in jelly, a very popular dish in Pentos, cockles, clams and pickled herring. She spotted pike poached in almond milk, which she particularly liked, she didn't wait for the help of her servants to get a plate of it and instead asked them to go and sit down and enjoy the meal as well. There was also wild pork, which was eaten very little in Essos, except in Braavos and Pentos. There were many specialties from the town of the Magister, such as duck liver cooked in wine or capon cooked with carrots, citrus fruits and grapes. At one time Daenerys would have dreamed of such a table, but their hostess was very generous and at that time it seemed more like they were trying to buy her and her brother with rare and expensive spices and alcohol. Visery seemed to enjoy the gifts and to gobble up all the food he could get his hands on. They had also served warm goat cheese with braised apples spiced with cinnamon from Westeros for dessert, but Daenerys preferred blueberries topped with fresh cream before ending her meal.

The Magister followed her brother's example and tasted all the dishes on their table. He was much less refined at the table than usual and Dany had to look away and imagine that he wasn't sitting right next to her in order to keep her food warm in her stomach. After finishing the last crumb on his plate, the Magister clapped his hands and the main door opened on to some servants, four of them carrying a strange trunk. Those who accompanied them were clearing their table so that they could put the trunk on it. It looked rather heavy and the young men had a little more trouble lifting it up to put it down in front of Daenerys.

"Let me offer you, princess, the relics of your House. Three beautiful dragon eggs from Asshaï, the dark city where it is said the first dragons came from." A servant opened the trunk in which the three so-called eggs were lying on beautiful Pentoshi tissues. "Time has turned them to stone, but they have not lost any of their splendor. "Dany was completely overwhelmed by what she had before her eyes, Viserys must have been too, her brother had never been so silent before such a gift, which had not been given to him otherwise. The eggs seemed to be covered with precious stones, but when she lifted the first one, she noticed not only its heaviness, but also the various scales that made it up, which shone like rare gems in the light of the day. The one in her hands was cream-coloured with golden reflections, the one in the center was deep black with red reflections, and the last one was dark green with bronze reflections. Her fingers came to touch the scales of the black one, which she then lifted. It was beautiful, like the other two, and they must have cost a fortune, what was she going to have to give this man in exchange? Then she looked up at the Magister and asked him why he was giving her such precious things.

"They belong to your family, they are also a wedding gift. Your marriage to Khal Drogo will help restore your family on the Iron Throne. I beg you to accept his request, so that you can take back what belongs to you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I am very sorry not to have posted earlier but life has been very busy and I have also changed my computer in the meantime. The next chapter will arrive much earlier.
> 
> Some details on the story and this chapter:
> 
> \- Daenerys is only 8 years old in the flashbacks in this chapter, it is completely normal for her to be submissive and silly towards her brother.  
> \- During the flashbacks, I mix all the POVs, but in the present, these are Dany's POVs only, for the moment.  
> \- I use the elements of the books for this story, more magic and fantasy so. Even if I use the actors of the show to make the moodboard, I imagine the characters as in the books, except Oberyn, Yara and Cersei, I have a lot of love for the actors and their interpretations. But you are free to imagine the characters as you wish.  
> \- I don't remember if I said it, but the events that are described in the books, or the show, will surely not happen in this story, I don't want to repeat the story of GRRM, so for example, Ned Stark always comes to KL but everything will change afterwards.
> 
> Thanks to those who have shared stories centered on Dany, I'll be able to start reading them. If you still have some ... you know what to do :)
> 
> Most of the pictures I find here : https://www.pngwave.com/
> 
> Again, sorry if the translation is bad, if there are mistakes, and there are surely, but I'm not writing for glory xD It's just my declaration of love to Daenerys, and the amazing character that she is and that has not been respected. A huge thank you to [iwillstandbydaenerysforever](https://iwillstandbydaenerysforever.tumblr.com/) for helping me to correct my faults, you can't imagine ALL the mistakes he corrects, it would be unreadable without him ;)


	3. A Dance with the Shadow Dragon

# 

#  _A Dance with the Shadow Dragon_

"My sister won't marry this savage. We can take a boat at the south dock, it's less guarded. ”

"You have no choice but to receive this khal, they will sack the city and many people will die, and those who remain alive will be enslaved. "Oberyn replied to Viserys with reproach.

"It is out of the question to risk the lives of anyone here. After all you have done for us, Mistress Ilissa, I cannot allow it." Answered the princess.

They had all gathered in the Mistress's private residence to see how they would handle the horde, the place was huge and so sumptuous that it was difficult to concentrate on the conversation without taking a look at the portraits hanging on the walls or at the shining chandeliers that dominated the rooms.

"I knew the risks involved in housing the last two Targaryens, and I'm proud that Oberyn trusted me to take care of you both."

Ilissa Naeraar was a middle-aged woman, very beautiful even though time had left its mark on her face, which was tinted with one of the most beautiful browns she had ever seen. She also had one of the sweetest and rarest hearts that it was unthinkable that someone so rich and with so much influence would want to help others. But Daenerys trusted Oberyn, and it was he who had entrusted them to the Mistress' care. Her husband had succumbed to a fever after one of his many journeys, but Ilissa had taken over the estate with dignity and ran her late husband's business in a much more prosperous way. She had managed to pay off all his debts and had become richer since then. She had never remarried, but was enjoying life in the same way as Oberyn, whom she had known as her lover a long time ago.

"And I can never thank you enough for all you've done, but I refuse to let them ruin this town because of me." Ilissa took Dany's hand in hers and looked at her with disconcerting affection, she was the closest thing to a mother for Daenerys, she has no children but never failed to bring all her love to her servants and her two hosts. "Oberyn, where's the priestess?"

"Who...is...?"

"Oberyn...?"

"It's too dangerous, something emanates from her, I don't trust her and nothing is ever free with them. And it's not a thing you pay with gold..."

"I ask for nothing..." She had subtly introduced herself into the room without arousing the senses. Oberyn was right, something was emanating from her, something strange and dark. She was also a beautiful woman, her gaze was mesmerizing, she seemed to have bewitched her brother who could have been drooling right now, he was so suspicious of strangers, normally. Oberyn, on the other hand, hadn't let himself be seduced, he had only one desire and that was to impale this woman on his spear.

"How could you...? I locked you in the cage with the piglets, you were tied to the trough!"

"What?!"

"What... what? Safety before comfort, you'll see when she tries to set your precious silver curls on fire." Oberyn then approached Viserys to give him the same kind of warning. "The future king that you are should avoid that kind of devil, or you risk losing parts of yourself that you love so much, and the kingdom will need heirs..."

"I wish the princess no harm, on the contrary, I am here to guide you, dragon girl." She replied while completely ignoring the future king who did not really appreciated the offense. Her brother was very sensitive but she had no time to ease his feelings.

"Very well, but first you will help us, you said you could repel the Dothraki, how?"

# 

####  _Somewhere, at a certain time_

The burning sand was a real torture for her feet, which she had not been able to cover in order to facilitate her training, the stifling heat made her skin redden and covered it with a film of sweat. She was in a desert in the middle of nowhere with Oberyn, he had brought her and her brother to Lys, he had paid the expenses for the boat and they embarked after spending a few more weeks in Myr before the Dornish got tired of the courtesans. 

Lys was the perfect place for debauchery, her brother seemed to think so too, but today Oberyn dedicated his time to training. It had been a few weeks since he put a sword in Dany's hands, Viserys protested, of course, she was too young for that, but above all, she was a woman, and a woman's role was to be a good wife who would bear beautiful heirs. Oberyn didn't care, women fought just as much in Dorne, he told them that he had eight bastard daughters, _for the moment,_ he winked, and that he taught all the older ones to fight so that they could defend themselves. 

Daenerys had great difficulty holding the sword, her arm was numb and her legs threatened to abandon her at any moment. She didn't like the training, the idea of being able to defend herself was nice, but the idea of killing much less. Her brother was much less scrupulous, but rather lazy about training and didn't like the Dornish prince. It was also a game for some children, with Oberyn, it was not.

"If you refuse to fight, I'll have to make you spend the rest of the day standing on one leg under the blazing sun and you'll spend the night cleaning swords and spears and all our clothes."

"Please Oberyn, I'm just a child and Viserys isn't even here, he's the future king!"

"Your brother is an idiot but he is the future king as you say, it would be easier to make a snake dance than to train him when he decides to spend the day in a brothel. And you're the right age, but not the right will."

She spent a lot of time with the Dornishman, they often spoke, and although Daenerys was young, he explained many realities of this world to her. She had to learn how to fight, for life had not yet offered her all the misfortunes it could. He blamed his brother, who spent his time brooding over his anger and dreaming of his kingdom rather than doing what it took to win it. The world was not kind to children, and it would be even worse for adults, and much worse for a woman. That's what Oberyn told her, the same thing he told his daughters. But any blow they took, they could return, and that's why Dany had to learn, he wasn't just teaching her how to hold a sword, he was also training her body to withstand pain. On several occasions he asked her to bring him back a random object in a very short time, it was a game for the princess, a fun game she was playing with her brother, but very quickly, the fun had given way to exhaustion. Her feet were damaged and sore, her legs were hurting and hardening, her body, so thin before, was beginning to change, she was gaining a little more strength every day.

The worst was when she had to spend the night without sleeping, looking at the passers-by through her window, she had to count them and differentiate between women and men, sometimes he would ask her a few more details about their clothes, what they were doing outside and when there were the least people on the street. When she had the audacity to tell him that it was no use to her training, Oberyn made her spend the day cleaning the inn where they were staying, and she only had a meal when it was over, very late at night. He then explained to her that training her mind was just as important as training her body, it was essential that she had good concentration and that she could spot all the details and memorize them.

His daughters' training was much easier, but they had not lacked food for so many years, their bodies were stronger, better prepared. The young princess was much more comfortable with books, she had learned a lot from the stories her brother had taught her and enjoyed learning more from Oberyn. Dany didn't like the training, but despite a few complaints, she never missed any of them, and never used her title to avoid them.

Oberyn was strict, and felt no remorse at seeing the princess exhausted, he didn't have much time and she had to learn fast. But sometimes he would change his plans and arrange a day off to go for a walk with the Targaryens, he liked to see the girl marvel at the beauties of the world, she deserved a little joy, she deserved to smile, to laugh, her life had been so sad and dark. Her brother was much more reserved, and had only two obsessions, the throne, and revenge, which he had in common with Oberyn, they could agree on that, at least.

The Dornishman was two sides of the same coin for Daenerys, he was both stern and demanding about education and training, but he was also the most affectionate and smiling man she had known since her knight. He had offered her many things since they had known each other, food above all, a roof and a bed to sleep in, but also toys, his time, his wisdom and a lot of joy. And even though he was jealous and cranky, she also knew that Viserys appreciated Dorne's help, he was proud of it, despite his condition, a great kingdom was loyal to him, but he didn't appreciate the man and began to spend a little more time with his sister, reading books to her, telling her stories, taking her on his lap until she fell asleep on him. Oberyn's arrival had, in a way, allowed Daenerys to recover a brother.

# 

After training, they met Viserys at the inn in good company, he dismissed the women and followed his two companions to their room. Oberyn had not planned such a long journey and money was running out, so he took a room for the three of them and, while the siblings slept together in bed, he requisitioned the chair. 

"I'll have to go back to Dorne, give news to my brother and make a plan to take King's Landing. You'll be staying with a faithful friend for the time being, I trust him, but you'll have to be very careful when you go out, Lys attracts a lot of people. I want you to continue training, you'll be taught by a preceptor here, much less demanding than I am, so enjoy."

The news hit the young princess, after a day together, Oberyn didn’t tell her he was leaving. And he was leaving tonight, leaving them with strangers. Dany held back her tears as the two men continued the discussion.

"Doran's going to want to know the terms of our arrangement, he still believes you'll marry my niece. ”

"I'll marry my sister, it's non-negotiable. My house must rise from its ashes, but marriages between Targaryens and Martells can still be made. I will offer my heir, the future king after me, to one of your princesses of his age. And for the delay this will cause you, my council will also need loyalists who have supported and helped me, many benefits will be granted to House Martell, if your brother wishes, he can still make requests. If you help House Targaryen, if through you we obtain vengeance, then House Martell will be the second power in Westeros, and nothing will threaten us, no more Dornish daughters will suffer, and the Lannisters, Baratheons and Starks will see their Houses humiliated, destroyed and forgotten."

Oberyn left without looking back, he spoke one last time with their host and left Essos for an indefinite period. The princess cried after his departure, Viserys mocked her weakness and sent her to bed without telling her that he saw the Dornishman shed a tear as he boarded the ship. Plans were constantly being made, and none of them were ever going as planned, none of them had any certainty that they would see each other again. The Targaryens were always in great danger, especially so close to Westeros.

# 

Everything had been prepared for the arrival of the khal, it had taken only a short time in truth, the Dothraki were a simple folk, who ate simply, dried horses in the great majority and who did not do the politeness to bend to the rules of the place where they were. And the Magister brought so much food with him that they didn't need to cook anything else. Daenerys didn't bother to dress to receive them, after all, the women of this folk were also dressed in trousers. They had agreed not to bring weapons, but the princess discreetly placed a dagger on her belt, _just in case,_ Oberyn always told her. The khal was not the kind of man to keep to a schedule either, Dany chose to wait next to the dragon eggs that had been offered to her by the Magister, she had not yet moved them to her room, this place was better protected, and what was in that trunk was too important. 

The eggs fascinated her, she didn't know why, they were only stone, would never be dragons and were just breathtakingly beautiful. Her brother had already made it known that they would cost a fortune, and the Magister, that they would only be hers as wedding gifts...

Daenerys wanted to keep them, no matter their values, they belonged to her House, they were its symbol, and the remains of a wonderful time when the dragons colored the sky. Their values were priceless. Then she thought back to her dream, and to the priestess, she had to have a private conversation with her, after all this she must understand, why she had this dream, why the heat of her bath was always hotter than that of others, and why the egg she had in her hands seemed to be warm and alive when no one else had noticed it. The woman was potentially dangerous, probably even, and she knew that listening to Oberyn was the right thing to do, but she at least had to talk to her, just one conversation.

A maid came to warn her that Viserys has sent for her. After carefully arranging her eggs out of sight, Daenerys joined her brother at the entrance to the estate where a welcome decoration had been erected. The meeting was so solemn for such a primitive people, and Dany kept clutching the fabric of her tunic of nervousness, all their safety rested on this red priestess still unknown the day before, when the princess would refuse the offer of the Horse Lord. And none of them even trusted her...

"You could have dressed up, dear sister, you represent our House."

"Our sigil is on my tunic, I represent our House as much as you, dear brother." She answered condescendingly.

Ilissa stood beside Daenerys as if to comfort her and assure her that she would never let them take her away, but the princess wouldn't let so many people die just to get out of this marriage, and if that priestess had lied, then she would marry the khal so the horde would leave Selhorys in peace. Oberyn had returned to the Targaryens' private home with the red priestess to watch over her, patiently waiting the time to come for her to intervene.

The sound of several hooves trampling the ground resounded in the air and soon, four horsemen were in front of them letting their mounts sing their greetings for them. They were very imposing, and knew how to hold the attention of their audience, their skins were coloured and signs were painted on them, specific to their culture, their hair was deep black and all braided with one or more bells hung on it. They were all bare-chested and their musculature was imposing, her brother seemed frail and insignificant in comparison, one of them was ahead of the others and his gaze was directed straight at her. _It’s him, Khal Drogo,_ a beast, much stronger, taller and with much longer hair than the others, the most frightening man she had seen, and living in the streets she had seen many of them, but this one was of a different kind. If she were to be his wife, she would disappear completely between his arms, this man's thigh was almost as big as the width of her abdomen, it would be like mating a mare and an elephant... _No, I can't marry him, he will break me in half as soon as he takes my hand... and I doubt he is that tender..._

The man came closer and looked at her body from top to bottom, then from bottom to top, stopping for a moment on her breasts, he seemed to be torn between satisfaction and annoyance while Daenerys was simply indignant. He glanced at his companions and one of them left the scene. The Magister spoken in Dothraki to the khal and talked to Ilissa before they all entered her house for further conversation. Other Dothraki arrived afterwards, as did the Westerosi knight as they went through the tables full of food. The khal was seated next to her and threw himself on his food while the Magister explained the origins of it, her brother was on the other side and seemed disgusted by this people who, for the most part, remained standing and smelled with curiosity the dishes that were before their eyes. The Westerosi was sitting next to her brother and she could feel his gaze falling on her quite often. She was not really comfortable here and kept thinking about the drama that might unfold before her eyes, what would they do if she killed their chef right in front of their eyes? And could she do it? She had never killed a man before, but no, she would certainly condemn everyone to death, no people would let their king or queen die in front of their eyes without any consequences for the murderer...

"What is this impostor priestess doing? I can't stand those animals anymore." Viserys whispered in her ear right in the middle of his unpleasant tasting of his dried piece of horse. The Magister then stood up and placed himself before the table of the Targaryens.

"The khal wishes to know when the wedding can take place, he'd like it to be as soon as possible, the journey to Vaes Dothrak will be long and, forgive my next words, he'd like his heir to be in your womb before the horde joins the Dosh Khaleen."

Her brother rose angrily, the alcohol he ingested was probably responsible for such bold behavior, but he seemed to want to cut the Magister in half with the knife in his hand, and given the difference in size between the person and the object, it would probably take longer than they had.

"I never gave any consent to this marriage. What did you tell to make him think my sister would carry his horseshit?"

The Magister seemed caught off guard by the prince's reaction. "But... you have accepted my gift and I don't think it's reasonable for you to refuse..."

"You dare to threaten us?"

"Not me, of course, but the khal will not take no for an answer, their traditions are very important to them, he will make the princess his wife, and if blood must be shed for that, then the marriage will be all the more successful for the Dothraki."

"So let it be your blood, but my sister will never become his broodmare." Viserys took her hand and wanted to leave the room when the khal stood up, grabbed Dany's arm and pushed her brother brutally to the ground. Daenerys shouted a cry of surprise and tried to go and help him but the man grabbed her face so that she could look at him. His other hand went to the opening of her tunic, and when he tried to look inside, the princess grabbed her dagger and tried to stab him but the khal stopped her hand as the blade scratched his skin. The wound seemed to amuse him and he pressed a little harder on her hand so that the blade would dig a little deeper.

**_"Yer anni. Yer anni khaleesi."_**

The situation was now as she had feared, her brother was being held down by another Dothraki and the rest of them were ransacking the place. Ilissa and some of the maidservants were seized by the men who were about to rape them when flames higher than them burst out of the braziers and from the mouths of the stone statues. The room darkened and shadows danced on the walls, they represented horses that succumbed in the middle of a battle, the beasts were howling and their riders were forced to fight on the ground, the shadows represented flames devouring everything in their path. The priestess stood behind the Targaryens and repeated words in a language well known to Daenerys, High Valyrian. The khal let her go and seemed angry as his gaze fell on the priestess, the rest of his people let the women go before abusing them and looked at the shadows with fear. 

The khal tried to approach her but other flames burst around her, her eyes shone bright red as she repeated the same words over and over again, smiling at her opponent. The flames were now dancing, threatening the Dothraki to burn them alive, Illyrio Mopatis had taken refuge under a table and was trembling with fear, Oberyn appeared in the opening of the entrance and have witnessed the whole scene apparently, she was hoping that he would not awaken the Magister's attention. The priestess was now speaking to the khal, in his language, the shadows on the ceiling turned into a great dragon flying over the room from side to side, and each of its breaths fanned the flames on the floor even more, and its howling was as icy as its shadow fire was burning.

The khal looked at Daenerys one last time before leaving the room followed by his men. The people remaining in the room were all shocked by what they just witnessed, the magic of the red priestesses was well known, but seeing it was far more confusing. No one dared to speak for a long time before their hostess walked over to the priestess to thank her.

"No need for that, honour your word and follow me. I'm counting on you Daenerys Stormborn." 

She then left the room to join Oberyn outside, her brother followed shortly afterwards with a quick movement and Daenerys went towards the maids still in shock. She helped them up, brought them water and some comforting words before turning to the Magister who was trying to regain what little dignity he had left after the scene of weakness he had offered. Swelling his chest and clearing his throat, he addressed the princess and their hostess.

"It would have been wiser to accept the agreement with the Dothraki, this... woman will not always be there to protect you. I'm sorry I came all this way for nothing, I still wish to support the Targaryen's cause, if you'll try to be more reasonable. In the meantime, please return the dragon eggs to me, as I told you, they're yours only if you're married."

Daenerys didn't like this man, he didn't inspire her confidence, but after his words, it was now anger and impatience that she felt, did he threaten her? She thanked silently, whoever could hear her, that her brother wasn't there, or her ears would surely have suffered from a tone that was too loud and insulting.

"This is not my house, it's not for me to tell you to leave, and yet I will. You come here as a guest and you impose your laws, your banquets, your slaves, whom you treat even worse than the flies around you. You insult not only me, but also House Targaryen by thinking for a moment that I am for sale, and that you, as rich as you can be, will be the merchant who will arrange the transaction and that thanks to this, you could obtain a place of choice in our future kingdom. I am not one of your spices, I am not one of your slaves, and I am not negotiable, I already have a future husband, there will be a wedding, I am keeping the eggs so, respecting your conditions. Now I kindly advise you to return home, as soon as possible."The Magister seemed surprised by the words of the princess, he turned his eyes to Ilissa who smiled proudly towards Daenerys.

"I'm afraid, Magister, I can no longer welcome you in my house. I thank you for your gifts, and the kindness you have shown in allowing us to discover foreign specialties. It has been a...real pleasure to have you with us."

 _Words worthy of a snake wrapped in an angel's voice and a deceitful smile,_ Oberyn had told her about Ilissa. She had not succeeded and built up the whole business by being kind and welcoming of course, she could have been Dornish in another life, again, according to the words of her dear friend. The Magister soon left the place, while adding last words, of thanks but also of prevention, was it possible that the Dothraki would come back and attack Selhorys, or him with an army of mercenaries to avenge the offense? Daenerys had to apologize for bringing so much trouble into this house, but that's when she noticed that the Westerosi knight was still present. He stepped forward and, to her surprise, knelt down before her.

"I do not wish to follow the Dothraki, they are not my people, I want to help you, in the reconquest of Westeros, I want to serve you, my princess. ”

The young woman remained speechless for a few moments, then asked the knight to rise.

"It's not for me to decide this, my brother is the future king, speak to him. But I thank you for your words and your allegiance. ”

A former knight was a great asset to them, as was Oberyn, but where she had complete confidence in one, she could not say the same about the other. She left "the bear" with Ilissa to join her brother. Outside, there was already no trace of the Dothraki, except for some rubbish left here and there. She crossed the gardens quickly before entering her house where Viserys was calling out to the priestess.

"I don't know what you want with my sister, but it is out of the question that we follow you, you have made this decision without my agreement. Your shadows may frighten these savages, but not me. ”

 _A little lie my brother,_ Daenerys thought. She had seen the fear on his face, even Oberyn had been surprised and worried. He was sitting at a table, sharpening his dagger and drinking his wine, waiting for Viserys to keep quiet, but it was Dany who stopped him.

"Leave us alone. I want to talk to her." Before Viserys could reply she said "Please brother, I'm safe, she just saved us all and I'm not hiding anything from you, I just need to talk to her in private."

 _Without you being there to interrupt me, or her, at every moment..._ It was better not to add those words... Viserys gave the priestess an icy glance before leaving the room, grumbling imperceptibly. Oberyn followed while playing with his dagger, perhaps he thought he would frighten the priestess, but after witnessing such magic, she doubted he would succeed. The woman was always in a fixed, upright position, her hands folded over her belly, half a smile clinging to her face, that hypnotic, disquieting look and unreal beauty that emanated from her. She looked at Daenerys as if she knew who she was, her past, her future, and it was very confusing for the young woman, especially since she had appeared in her dream, before she met her.

"You don't seem to want us bad, but do you want us good? I don't know, and if you do, then why now? I've needed help for years, we've needed help, we could have died hundreds, thousands of times when we were on the street. I could have died at the same time as my mother, or at the hand of the traitors on Dragonstone who wanted a title from the usurper. ”

"Things aren't so simple, magic doesn't fix everything, you're not alone in this world, we didn't know, and we had to find you. The Lord of Light sends me visions into the flames, it's not always easy to interpret, I can't tell you what I don't know."

"The Lord of Light... R'hllor...?"

"Indeed... But you're making a mistake, we don't want to help you, we need your help. I just need to guide you. You must embrace your destiny, Daenerys Stormborn, it is far more important than you think, it is not limited to regaining your power and influence of your House, you must lead, you must also serve, serve our Master, and serve this world. ”

Her words fogged her mind even more, she had nothing particularly special, except the patience she had shown in putting up with her brother, she was far behind Oberyn when it came to fighting, and as a leader she would have little power after she becomes the queen.

"Why me? My brother will be king, he will rule."

"It is not him I saw in the flames, it is not him who dreams of the future, he is not the bride of fire, the daughter of fire, the daughter of dragons. It is not in your lineage, it is not in your claim to the throne, it is in your blood, in your heart, in your soul. It's not a choice, it's a destiny. But you can still choose your current life, you will never go home, you will live free, until this world is no more, but if you follow our way, your life will no longer belong to you, you will be the instrument of the Master who will bring back the Dawn, and you will save millions of lives. I can't force you, but you promised me, Daenerys."

The princess had been sitting on a chair and looking at the floor for some time now, the words of the priestess really disturbed her and she was still wondering if all this was possible, was it still a dream? The same words resounded constantly in her mind, _why me? Why... ?_

When she looked up, she realized that the priestess still hadn’t moved, still that half smile and impassive attitude, as if she hadn't just shaken her whole life and that of her brother. What was she going to tell him anyway ? Did following this woman mean that they would have to be separated? She had only him, had known only him for so many years, he was her only real family, and without him she would not be here before this priestess who claims she has to save the world... But it is true that she made a promise. She had stupidly promised a stranger to get rid of a more urgent danger and she had to assume, even if she had to leave her brother for good, because she had no idea where she would have to go, or if she would come back. But this dream had been so real, her mother too, perhaps she had a chance to see her again, and if all was true? She must have known, because it wasn't the first dream she had, there had been dozens before that, she was too young to understand and had forgotten their content, but they were still connected to her House, to magic and dragons.

"I will follow you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **  
> _"Yer anni. Yer anni khaleesi." : You are mine. You are my khaleesi._  
> **  
>  I use an online translator for Dothraki, and all the other languages I would use in this story, I cannot assure its accuracy.  
> Well, with the current situation, I will be able to write more often, I will not thank COVID-19, I rather want to insult it. It is very important to listen to the instructions of the health authorities, too many people still think they are infallible, take care of yourself, and above all take care of others, do not put them in danger.  
> I'm not very good with Photoshop, so sorry if the moodboards are not very beautiful. It's just to add a little color to the pages ^^ (And see Dany & Oberyn beautiful perfection :p)  
> If you have any questions, suggestions, don't hesitate, thanks for your patience, and sorry for the wait. Thank you so much to [iwillstandbydaenerysforever](https://iwillstandbydaenerysforever.tumblr.com/) again, he's a hero for my corrections :)
> 
> I forgot to add that I had a little salty wink to season 8, I hope you saw it;)


	4. Monsters, men and martyrs

# 

#  _Monsters, men and martyrs_

Daenerys had planned to go and talk to her brother when she came across three young Dothraki women in the middle of the gardens. Fear struck her for a moment, as she checked around her to see if the khal had faked leaving. They must have been abandoned on the spot and didn't seem to pose any threat to the princess. One of them was different from the other two, she was clear of skin with blond hair and pretty blue eyes, while the Dothraki had black hair and coppery skin, like her two companions. She was also older, while the other two seemed to be younger, apparently the same age as the princess.

"Why did you not follow your people?" Daenerys said, hoping they would understand the common language. The young blonde woman rose to her feet and approached delicately 

"We are a gift. We belong to you now, my lady."

"Magister Illyrio Mopatis was to give us to you during the wedding ceremony." Added one of the young ladies behind.

She already received a priceless gift from the Magister, and also made him understand that she did not like slavery. Why give her these girls from a folks who lived so differently from her? Did he want to insult her? Offend her? Were they going to spy for him? They seemed innocent, and above all, totally lost.

"You don't belong to me, you are free to go wherever you want."

"Where can we go? The khalasar is gone, what will we do if we can't stay with you?"

The images of her childhood came back to her mind, the cold streets, the cold ground she slept on with her brother and the constant hunger, that is what awaited these girls here, or elsewhere. They would not be safer with them, but she couldn't leave them alone and couldn't ask Ilissa to take care of them, she had already done so much for them.

"Very well, but you are not my slaves and are free to make your own decisions. We are leaving soon, I don't know the destination yet, and I can't guarantee your safety. In the meantime, follow me, I will find you a room."

On the way, Daenerys discovered that the three girls were named Doreah, Irri and Jhiqui, the last two were made slaves when khal Drogo attacked their khalasar, and the young blonde woman was bought by the Magister in a pleasure house. In spite of her unhappy and dangerous childhood, she was luckier than them, who were used and abused by men all their lives. They, however, retained a certain mischievousness and didn't seem to be frightened by men, given the way they looked at her brother as she explained the situation to him, and the way they giggled after every sigh of Viserys.

She finally managed to get her brother to come to her room. She had no idea how to start the conversation but was sure that whatever she said, he would be angry. 

"I'm going with the priestess. We have never been apart, and I'm not asking you to follow me, but I must go."

Viserys remained silent for a moment while he was lost in his wine. She saw his jaw shrink rapidly, he was angry, disappointed perhaps? He stood up slowly and put his cup down before walking towards her.

"You are completely unconscious, sister. And I am sure the Dornishman would say the same, which just goes to show how stupid you are, if you can get us both to agree. You barely know her and you are going to walk out on her, not knowing where you are going... The priestesses of R'hllor are fanatics, what if you end up sacrificing yourself for her god? There are enough Targaryens who have made fools of themselves throughout history... Do you remember Prince Aerion Targaryen, I taught you, and do you also know how he died?

"Drinking wildfire, thinking he would reincarnate as a dragon..."

"You are about to do something like him, something stupid that will cost your life. I can't let you do such a thing. You are my sister, but you are also my future wife. I have a duty to restore our home, to bring a new Targaryen dynasty into this world, and you must help me. You will be the mother of our future, of the future glory of our House. Or are you going to leave me alone in this world?"

Daenerys was touched by her brother's last words, which he pronounced in a more muted voice, whereas he kept a firm and cold voice to say everything that had gone before, all without giving her the slightest glance. She approached him and grabbed one of his hand in hers.

"No, of course not. But you didn't see what I saw, I can'tt explain it, but I feel this is what I have to do. I saw this woman before I met her, she appeared to me very clearly in a dream." She avoided mentioning their mother, it would only cause him pain, and make him really angry, but she could tell him that she had dreamt about dragons. "...And after that, she actually appeared and this Magister offered me fossilised dragon eggs, Viserys, this is no coincidence, please trust me." 

Her brother seemed to think for a moment and then hugged her tight. "Very well, sweet sister, but I will not let you go alone, and provided Martell and Mormont follow us as well. And if you are wrong, you alone will bear the responsibility for the consequences of your choices. I hope they do not involve our lives." He added before dropping a chaste kiss on her lips. He had never done this before, but lately, he looked at her more like a man, not like a brother. Her body had changed and become much more feminine over time. Her breasts were not very big but her brother and the khal looked at them anyway, and other men too. She was old enough to have a husband and could bear a child, her brother would soon marry her to ensure heirs to the throne. And her brother loved women, he had not hidden in the pleasure houses they visited, would he be faithful to her? Were kings faithful? No, she was not stupid enough to believe that, perhaps in another life, she might have known love? But in this one, she had a duty, and too many enemies to care. And then, she knew what love was, she loved her brother, she loved Oberyn, and also Ilissa, and they also loved her, that must have be enough.

# 

Convincing Oberyn had been more difficult, in fact, she didn't hold it against him, he wanted to came back to Dorne, he recently returned to Essos, but he didn't want to leave his house anymore, and she understood that, of course, she wanted to find hers for so long. But her determination had not failed, and like her brother, he did not want her to go alone with the priestess. 

She informed Mistress Ilissa of her intentions and they all prepared their things for their departure. Their hostess, and friend, had graciously found horses for the road and tents to rest in on the way. The farewells were difficult, this woman had been a blessing in their lives, Daenerys made a real friendship with her, the experiences and wisdom of this woman were a treasure trove of knowledge for her. Her brother and Oberyn had taught her a lot, but being able to talk and learn with a woman was different, there were things that only a woman could teach her and Dany needed her a lot. 

"It's not a goodbye, darling. You will be back to see me very soon. You know you can always count on me, for everything." Dany hugged Ilissa to prevent others from seeing her tears, and also because the need for contact was necessary. "You will be a wonderful queen for Westeros, people will love you, I am sure of that. How could they not ?"

Ilissa didn't hide her tears as she ran her hands over the princess's cheeks before she let her go. Dany said nothing but she didn't know if she would be loved, the last Targaryen who reigned had not exactly left good memories, and she was his daughter. She quickly turned her gaze to the priestess, already on horseback, while Ilissa and Oberyn exchanged a much hotter farewell. Viserys thanked Ilissa nonchalantly while shaking her hand, adding that she would be welcome in his future kingdom. Irri, Jhiqui and Doreah were also on horseback, ready to leave, while Daenerys offered a last look to her friend and the maidservants with whom she had linked during her stay in Selhorys, they had hugged them one by one earlier in the day. They were so sad to see the princess leave and told her they already regretted her sweet voice and her songs full of joy and colors.

"If I wasn't sure you were a pure descendant of Valyria, I would have called you a Martell, you are as hot as Dorne's sun, and terribly stubborn Daenerys Targaryen." Oberyn addressed few words to her as he led his horse behind the priestess. One last look at what had been her home for some time, a house she had to leave, again, and as she followed her comrades, she wondered if she would ever belong anywhere.

# 

On the first night they stopped to camp, Daenerys shared her tent with Irri, Jhiqui and Doreah, while Viserys shared his tent with Oberyn and Ser Jorah Mormont. The priestess, for her part, wished for some time alone with her god to pray, and then added that she would manage herself for the night. On the following days, the girls felt more comfortable with the princess, they began to be more curious, asking her various questions and taking care of her. They were doing her hair, helping her clean herself in ‘The Rhoyne’, which they had been walking along for a few days now. Daenerys, again, told them that they were not her servants, but they responded they were bored and were happy to share these moments with her. Tonight, they decided to take care of her feet and hands, with the help of an ointment made from plants used by the Dothraki folks, Daenerys had to admit that it was very pleasant, the contact of their delicate hands on painful areas was great to find sleep afterwards. They spent their day on horseback and this left some traces on her skin, not used to riding for so long.

The girls told her about their life among the Dothraki, the harsh conditions and the customs they had. They often exchanged their roles and Daenerys learned a lot by working with her hands. She really liked these girls and was grateful that she was not only travelling with men. She tried to weave sandals with dried grass on Irri’s advice but ended up throwing it all into the fire in anger at not being able to do such a simple thing. _I will be queen someday, I have to follow this priestess who testifies, incessantly, to the great destiny that awaits me, and I can not manage to weave simple sandals… I am the blood of the Old Valyria, the blood of the dragon, I must be able to succeed._ Other times, she would isolate herself in her tent and spend time looking at her petrified eggs, the shadow of the flames waving over each of them, their colours changing from dark to light, from sparkling golden to dull cold, they were beautiful and belonged to her. A Valyrian heritage, a Targaryen heritage, not her brother’s, hers, only. There were no longer two of them, but five now, the last Targaryens. They were alive, she felt it, the warmth emanating from them, that feeling of a presence inside, what should she do? Was there any way…? She allowed herself a moment of bewilderment, an unthinkable, impossible dream, then she was among the clouds, sitting on some rough thing, stony thing, but alive, and warm, so warm that she felt herself on fire.. a dragon, she was flying on the back of a dragon. Everything was so small on the ground, even the pyramids looked ridiculous at that height. The speed of the dragon was impressive, Daenerys had only one word in mind as the animal led her to an unknown place: _Freedom._

“Why you didn't marry the khal ?“ Doreah’s voice suddenly crossed her mind. The soft touch of the young woman had lost her in her thoughts of a special moment she had spent alone with her three dragon eggs. She was helping her get dressed while Irri and Jhiqui were arguing over which one of them would help the princess prepare lunch for the group.

"Well… I don'tt know him and I'm not something he can buy.”

“Why do you need to know him? The khal is handsome and strong, he's the one who will lead all the khalasars into one and will be the father of the stallion who mounts the world. You would be very fortunate to be his khaleesi. It is known. "Irri replied after pushing Jhiqui back into the mountain of cushions on the ground.

"It is known. "She repeated as she tried in vain to get up again.

The princess was amused by the situation and then went to her friend’s hand to help her. "Don't you know love among your people? It's not limited to the physical appearance of the man, or the woman, it doesn't concern his ability to lead an army. You have to know someone to love him. You have to be able to talk to him, and we couldn't understand each other. Things are much simpler with your folks, but not ideal. Besides, I'm going to marry Viserys. ”

“So you love your brother?” Doreah asked her mischievously.

“Well, I…” The princess was caught off guard by her question. She didn't love Viserys, well, she did, but as a brother, and even if it made no difference for the Targaryens before, it did for her. Things would have been easier if she loved him like that, with desire, but it was always better than marrying a stranger. Women had little choice in whom they marry, and it was rarely out of love that they did it…. The girls seemed to agree with the actual situation, Daenerys would have liked things to be different.

“I love my brother, of course.” She replied to close the subject.

“As for the language, I will teach you. That was why Illyrio offered me to you. I had to teach you how to talk in Dothraki.”

Daenerys was shocked to learn they were not meant to be mere servants, they had been traveling for days and none of them had indicated that. “If you were supposed to teach me your language, what else were you two supposed to do?

"I was supposed to teach you how to ride a horse, but you already knew how…” replied Irri.

Doreah just smiled before adding “And I, the art of love.” Her hand tenderly caressed the princesse’s one before bursting into laughter at the sight of her reddened cheeks.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I only had to teach you how to please your husband, as I did in the brothel I was in before. I can still do it, even if the husband has changed…”

As Irri and Jhiqui giggled without being able to stop, the princess quickly got out of the tent to avoid further embarrassment.

# 

The ruins of the ancient city of Sar Mell laid on the horizon, it would be enough to spend the night there. Although, on the other side of the Rhoyne, the town of Volon Therys could offer them chambers to rest, and increase their stock of provisions, Volantis was still several days away on horseback and the detour by boat would take far too long. From this town, only a few ruins remained that had once been the homes of several families, lives wiped out by the Valyrian Empire wishing to spread throughout Essos. Her ancestors. They built so many impressive things, riding dragons and forging Valyrian steel, but at what cost? Slavery, mass murder, the subjugation of people by force. What could have they done against the dragons and their riders? It would be so much easier to reclaim the Iron Throne with dragons, but would they become like their ancestors whose actions she now judges? It was certainly better and quicker to die by the fire of a dragon than by bleeding to death on a battlefield... The dragons were no longer, the men still there, the battlefields ever redder with the blood of poor soldiers and their cries more powerful than the winged beasts that existed before. The dragons were not responsible, the men who rode them were. And what they just discovered would further strengthen the princess' conviction. Jorah Mormont had found traces of a struggle on the ground, dried blood mingling in the sand, the traces of the Dothraki horde, he guessed. The stench in the air only suggested one thing, corpses. The next alley they entered was littered with them. Many women and children, Dany closed her eyes for a moment before the barbarity the Dothraki had committed. Most of the children died in the arms of their mothers, others had been put to death trying to escape. What kind of men could do that? _Monsters..._

Had they taken revenge for being humiliated at Selhorys? The guilt overwhelmed her, but the rage was even greater. What would she do if she had a dragon and Khal Drogo stood before her now ? _Monsters..._ Could cruelty be justified with certain circumstances ? Her brother wouldn' hesitate, he's a king, a future king, he must not tremble, his enemies would use every sign of weakness to destroy the Targaryen dynasty once and for all, and it might be them, one day, who will be found in a blood-covered alley.

"Strange." Mormont wondered as he drew closer to them. "It's not usual for the Dothraki to kill women and children, they either make slaves of them in their khalasar or sell them in a market. This is a great loss for them. “

"It is known Khalee... Daenerys. "Added Irri, who was still struggling to get used to calling her by her name.

"Maybe they took a few and killed the rest, whatever, let's go on. "Her brother replied impatiently.

"They would have kept them all. Women and children sell well in a slave market, the Dothraki trade them for resources they can't afford on their own." Retorted Jorah Mormont before ordering his horse to gallop ahead. The cries of a child alerted the group, and Oberyn was the first to reach the spot where the sounds were coming from. When she saw the child, Daenerys couldn't help but jump off her horse to join her as quickly as possible. Most of her hair had been snatched, she was curled up on the ground and shaking and sobbing. _Monsters..._ How could they do this to her ? Fear dominated her gaze, she tried to move as far away as possible from the strangers facing her, Daenerys slowed her approach hoping she would understand her words.

"We are not going to hurt you, we want to help you." Daenerys fetched her gourd and offered it to the child. After some hesitation, she took it and drank its entire content. The young woman took another one and tore a piece of blanket from her horse, soaked the cloth with water and began to clean the little girl's face.

"My name is Daenerys, you can call me Dany, it's easier." She also introduced the other members of the group but noticed the priestess was absent. After a few moments of silence, the little girl finally spoke.

"Saerenna... that's my name."

Dany smiled at the child and spent a few moments comforting her, she preferred not to ask the little girl any questions about what happened here, she was quite shaken for the moment, she offered to follow them before going in search for the priestess. Oberyn was busy gathering the bodies with Jorah Mormont, in order to offer them a decent burial, Viserys had gone to look for a place to camp outside the town, they weren't going to decently stay in this cursed place and the girls took the princess' place to take care of Saerenna. The only two-storey ruin was the place where the priestess had decided to take refuge. Daenerys climbed the few steps, which were miraculously intact, before she found the red woman in an open room, her eyes lost on the corpses that Oberyn and Jorah were taking care of.

"This sacrifice cannot be lost to the Lord of Light."

"Sacrifice?" The intrigued princess replied.

"I can't explain it, I just feel it, that is all. I must burn their bodies, we will need all the help my god can give us."

"I can't allow it, we don't know their beliefs, they deserve to have their bodies treated with dignity, especially after... this."

"Purification by fire is far more dignified than a body rotting and being devoured in the ground." Daenerys was about to leave before she remembered something.

"I wanted to introduce you to the child, but I realized I don't even know your name, I know nothing about you, and you keep asking for my trust, you will have to start giving before you receive." The priestess approached, a slight smile on her face, Dany swore for a moment that a red lightning bolt shone in her eyes as she took off her hood, revealing her beautiful black hair. "No one asked. My name is Morgana."

When Daenerys joined the others, they hadn't finished their work yet and already seemed very tired, the days on horseback, the bad rest in the tents and the heat were taking their toll on their abilities. Dany explained what the priestess wanted to do, and even though they all agreed on the respect due to the dead, they couldn't help pointing out that there were many bodies to bury, and that they wouldn't have the strength to do it, at least not without losing several days, and as many resources, and there were no other towns between here and Volantis, they had to be very careful with the water, especially. Dany had to give her approval to the priestess. 

The next day, Daenerys wanted to know more about the Westerosi, perhaps he would be more talkative than Morgana. After asking Saerenna to ride with Doreah, she brought her horse closer to Mormont.

"May I call you Ser Jorah ?"

"It would be my pleasure, even though I'm not a knight anymore."

"Would you tell me your story? I would like to know you, and I would like to know the land I was born in but never saw."

"Of course, Princess." Jorah told her about ‘Bear Island’, about his father, now Commander of the Night's Watch, he told her he had to flee Westeros because Eddard Stark wanted his head for selling slaves, he was very vague about why he did it, He spoke very few about his wife, just the fact that he had been married, and she had left him for another man, while he was selling his services as a mercenary in order to have enough money to live with her.

"Northerners are really sad to die..." Oberyn developed a passion for annoying and even pissing off the Westerosi. He found him sad and far too serious, but most of all, he didn't trust him. Oberyn trusted few people, but when he did trust someone, it was unrivalled and of unshakeable loyalty.

"Are you always so quick to jump into a conversation that is none of your business? 

"Are you always so quick to jump into a group that doesn't want you?" Dany rolled her eyes in apprehension at the totally childish feud between the two men.

"I swore an oath to House Targaryen, and they accepted my vows..." "And you betrayed this family in the past, they should never have trusted you.“

"And you? What did you do, Martell? Nothing ! As always, you buried your head in the sand and waited for it to pass!"

Oberyn dismounted from his horse, lance in hand, ready to correct that affront when Daenerys ended the fight before it began.

"If you two can'tt get along, leave, both of you. We will get nowhere if we are disunited. We must trust each other and stop this nonsense.

Oberyn got back on his horse before throwing a mocking smile at the angry Westerosi. Dany rolled her eyes a second time before she went to meet Saerenna who clung to her neck with force. She couldn't have been older than Daenerys when she first met Oberyn, a lost little girl with no family, bitterly recalling her situation as a child. The little girl spoke a few words and still mourned her loss, but every once in a while she looked at Dany and gave her best smile. And each time, the young woman swore to herself that she would do everything she could to take care of her.

Viserys joined Oberyn after spending a lot of time in the company of Doreah, her brother was very appreciative by the beauty of the Lyseni, but what he liked most of all, was being able to talk to her about his future reign, the greatness of their House, and the dragons. If Doreah didn't spend all her nights in her tent, she would be sure that he would have already tried to bed her and honor her with _‘the dragon’,_ as he boasted when he talked about women with Oberyn.

"What does she do in her nights?" Asked Viserys to the Dornishman while he kept his eyes on the priestess. "I have no idea, surely things that would turn your dear sister's heart upside down. She serves R'hllor."

"You brag about how good you are at reading people, after these few days, is she dangerous ? “

"You were there, weren't you? Of course she is dangerous, but she can be dangerous for some people, and therefore, useful for others. She can either be the sweetest dream you've ever had or your worst nightmare. Let's make her, for sure, the nightmare of our enemies."

Daenerys turned her gaze to Morgana, who never stayed with them, spoke to them very little, and even refused to share a meal with them. Did she even eat ? Dany knew one thing, however, one thing she loved, something they both shared, _fire._

# 

####  _Somewhere, at a certain time_

Lys had given much pleasure to the future king of Westeros. They still lived where the Dornishman had left them. The innkeeper didn't really take care of them, but his wife prepared meagre meals for them and the waitresses amused Viserys a lot. Nothing was worthy of a future king here, neither the food nor the rooms, let alone his host. Only women suited him. Lys was famous for its brothels, many women had the blood of Old Valyria flowing in their veins and their beauty was unsurpassed. Sometimes, when he was in bed with one of them, he would imagine his sister instead, older, with the same eye color as his own, her perfect pale skin and silver hair so long that it covered her buttocks. For the moment she was just a whiny, exasperating little girl, but later, he had no doubt that she would be the most beautiful woman he would ever set eyes on. 

_Where is she still hidden?_ He thought angrily.

Since Martell's departure, his sister changed her behavior, she moved away from him. She was no longer looking for him to play with her, or tell her a story. She spent her time daydreaming sadly or practicing by following the lessons the Dornishman given them. He was glad that she didn't annoy him anymore, but on the other hand, he didn't want her to turn away from him and choose a new family. He had to remain the most important man in her life and her loyalty to her king, and family, unshakeable. If Martell thought he could separate them so that he could marry his niece, it would snow in Dorne before that happened. But the Dornish found his way into his little sister's weak heart, and since he left, she had not smiled, at least not in front of him. It was urgent that he take care of this problem.

He found her outside the inn, at the bottom of the stairs leading to the river. The place was private, but it was still dangerous for her to be out there alone. She was aimlessly watching the trickling water while playing with the stick she used to practice with. 

"Dany! I have already told you not to go outside alone, if you don't listen, I will have you locked up in our room. “

He was surprised that she remained insensitive to his reprimand, she didn't even jump out of fear when he called her. Once close to her, he grabbed her stick to force her to look at him.

"Have you gone deaf, sweet sister? “

Once again, she remained silent. Her face turned to the horizon a few moments before looking at her brother.

"Why didn't we go to Dorne? It wasn't safer for us to go with Oberyn?"

His sister's words confirmed what he suspected, her change in behavior had something to do with the Dornishman's departure. 

"Dorne is not sure for now, we must wait for a common understanding with Doran Martell. The risk was too great that he would betray us, if we did not agree to an alliance." His sister seemed surprised by his words. "Who decided we wouldn't go to Dorne?" There was a hint of reproach in her question, which Viserys strongly disliked.

"It was me, of course! Don't dare think you have any say in this, Daenerys. Martell insisted, but I have chosen prudence, for both our sakes. You should be thanking me instead of standing in your corner and being even more useless than before. “

His sister got up and for the first time he saw anger in her eyes. "He insisted...? He wanted to take care and protect us and you refused him that ?! You led me to believe that he abandoned us..."

Viserys became angry and his hand found itself beating hard on his little sister's cheek. The girl held her cheek while she gave a feverish look to her brother. "I protected our family! I protected you! You would have died a long time ago if it wasn't for me. Our father trusted Tywin Lannister and you know what it cost him, and us! I wouldn't blindly trust Dorne just because they send some jester who bought you a few things and managed to cheat you. I hope you will prove yourself worthy of our House by not being so stupid in the future." His hand rose again but Daenerys quickly hit him with her stick. The pain was sharp, she slapped her brother's nose with a great force for a girl of her age. She didn't wait for Viserys to come to his senses before running away quickly, leaving her brother on the ground, after falling at the spur of the moment. The pain also brought a few tears to him, and blood drops now stained the ground.

After recovering from the shock, and cleaning himself in the river, Viserys went to his room. Of course, his sister wasn't there. He then, went to the main room to order several beers, which he drank quickly before collapsing on the table, drunk.

When he awoke, the inn was empty, the light rushing through the stained glass windows seemed to indicate that a new day had begun. Everything that happened the day before came back to his mind. His sister dared to strike her king... her brother, the one who had taken care of her for so long. And it was all because of one person. How could she have become so attached to the Dornishman in such a short time? More importantly, why? He was nothing special, he was insolent, refused to bend the knee and didn't show him the respect due to his rank. He had been very hard during their training and even harder with his sister. He forced her to stay up several nights and deprived her of meals for a whole day, sometimes giving her only a meagre soup and bread in the evening. He even intervened several times to take his sister away from her tormentor. She was just an ingrate that he should have abandoned long ago. 

As he went back up to his room, he heard noises in the corridor. When he recognized his sister's cries, he rushed down the stairs and quickly reached the place where a man was standing above her. He held a knife to her throat and ordered her to follow him, promising her a life as a princess in his home. No doubt he hoped to make her a slave in his brothel. She was still young, but she would spend a few years learning how to please men before he could finally sell her body. The rage was growing inside him, a Targaryen, his sister, was not destined for a simple brothel, she would be his queen, the mother of a new dynasty, a great dynasty, the dynasty of Viserys, the third of his name, of House Targaryen. The heir of a great family that he will rebuild from nothing, with nothing, in exile. No man, but him, was worthy to lay his hands on his sister. This is what Viserys wanted more than anything else, to regain his honour, his family's honour, honour and greatness. His throne, and the vengeance that comes with it. 

He was quick to react, rushing without thinking about the individual, throwing him to the ground in a burst of courage that he had known too little in his life. His hands grabbed the man's neck and he applied all his strength to deprive him of his breath. Unfortunately for the young prince, the man was almost twice his size, and he was much stronger, which allowed him to free himself and exchange his position with him. It was now his turn to run out of breath, and he would have liked to have taken Martell's lessons more seriously. His sister got up and tried to help him, but the man pushed her back violently. Still, Viserys was able to catch his breath and saw Dany rubbing her head in pain, because of the impact. The man resumed his work until the innkeeper intervened and immobilized him after a few punches. 

Viserys pleaded for the man's execution, but their host told him that he would have to do the dirty work himself and then they could leave his inn. So, he gave up his revenge and accompanied his sister to their room. She sat at the foot of her bed and he noticed that the man wounded her neck. A thin line of blood was beginning to dry, but she didn't seem to notice it, still rubbing her head, her eyes fixed on the floor, avoiding looking at him. He went to fetch a bowl of water and lifted her chin before wiping the blood off with a cloth, leaving a slight cut. He was amazed at how gentle he was towards his little sister, but it was nothing compared to the look she was now giving him. There were tears in the corner of her eyes, and when he finished, she gave him a tender kiss on the cheek, which he found very pleasant. And without either of them saying a word to the other, Dany went to bed while Viserys stay at the end of it. He was afraid, very afraid, he had never been so aware that he could lose the only family he still had. This man could have stolen his sister from him. Martell certainly did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am very sorry for my long absence. I had writing problems with everything that has been going on in the world for the past few months. I hope that you all are ok. I will be able to write the chapters faster now. And I intend to finish this story. Thanks to [iwillstandbydaenerysforever](https://iwillstandbydaenerysforever.tumblr.com/) for the correction. If you have any questions, or if you find any mistakes, don't hesitate :)
> 
> Things are still a bit calm, enjoy it * evil laugh *
> 
> There will be Fire and Blood.


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